The Emperor
by Yukito-sama
Summary: UPDATED! P4. Kanji isn't too sure what to make of what his shadow had said but he knows there is some truth. Now he finds out he has feelings for his Senpai, and his Senpai returns them. SoujixKanji.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: Wow, it's been a long time since I've written a fanfic. ^__^;; I may be a little rusty in general so I apologize. I do want to say that this fic is a little AU in the aspect that in the game it always took people so long to recover from coming out of the TV World even if you saved them a long while before hand, so I sped that up but kept the dates in order so things to get wonky. I also want to apologize if the characters end up being OOC, though with Souji it's just up for the player's interpretation. w

Anyway, this is a SoujixKanji fic, so if you don't like yaoi please don't flame. I liked the idea of this pairing the moment you really got to know Kanji and I loved the idea of a character questioning their self in such a way.

It will be rated T for now though it may increase depending on the direction it flows. This note ended being longer than intended………On with the story!

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It was raining again. Souji stood at the doors of the school, looking forlornly at the gray clouds as he debated about how to spend his afternoon seeing that he didn't have his day care duties. There was also wasn't a point for him to hang around the school; nearly all the students fled the campus to make it through the rain as quickly as possible and the clubs he was a part of weren't meeting. Heaving a sigh Souji decided to head over to Aiya for their Rainy Day Special and figured that, if there was time, he would stop by the shrine to speak with the fox until sunset.

Souji listlessly opened his umbrella and stepped out into the sheet of rain, his mind slowly drifting as the drumming of water above him blocked out every other sound. He floated from thought to thought, his memories milling about as he mindlessly retraced steps towards the shopping district. It was the first time he really stopped to think about the friends he had made in Inaba and how much he really cared for them even after such a short time knowing them. At first it all seemed like nothing more than a 'who dunnit' game, an odd activity to do after school but as things began to escalate their bonds seemed to tighten and it was beginning to look like nothing could tear them apart.

"Damn it."

The exclamation caused Souji to come to a stop, suddenly noticing Kanji standing beneath a tree. He was rummaging through his bag and cursing beneath his breath as he pulled out a water logged book. "Kanji?"

Kanji looked up abruptly with a furrowed brow and a clenched jaw. The anger in his face seemed to melt in to an embarrassed expression as their eyes met. "Ah, Senpai," Kanji smile, "I didn't think anyone was still at school."

"A few clubs are still going," Souji replied. He paused and watched as Kanji pulled out another water logged object, the boy sighing and ramming both wet items back into his bag. "I take it you didn't bring your umbrella."

"Didn't think I had to," Kanji replied as he slung his bag over his shoulder, "Guess I was wrong." He looked out across the rain drenched street and frowned slightly, muttering to himself again. Souji gave a soft smile and held out his umbrella, the smile growing a little wider as a rosy hue bloomed in Kanji's cheeks. "D-don't worry about it, Senpai; my place is outta the way for you."

Souji shook his head, "I'm going to the shopping district for some food. Come on." It took a moment of silent negotiations for Kanji to comply but soon the two boys were strolling down the street. They huddled beneath the umbrella, Kanji eventually taking it out of frustration and holding it in a way so neither of them got too wet. Eventually the two began to speak about their classes, though it all seemed a little awkward. It wasn't long ago that their small group saved Kanji from the TV World and the underclassman was still nervous and agitated by what his shadow had said. It didn't help that Yosuke kept bringing up the subject and began to make verbal jabs at the bleached blond.

Kanji decided to join Souji for a meal, the two of them deciding to sit and watch as the owner prepared their food. Silence had settled between the two boys and Kanji shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He looked at Souji out of the corner of his eye, feeling a mass of butterflies spring to life in his stomach as he really took a look at his senpai. He lowered his eyes and tried to sooth the odd feelings but something was fighting against him and he knew he would just be denying himself again. "So, uh, Senpai," Kanji cleared his throat, "it seems like things are going well between you and Yukiko-senpai."

A smile crept across Souji's face but he shrugged in response, "There isn't really anything special between us, Kanji-kun; I've just been trying to help her with her cooking." His voice trailed off as he noticed a slight look of relief flash across Kanji's face as he fidgeted with his chopsticks. "She's getting better," he continued, "but I think the cooks at the inn have more to do with that then I realize."

The conversation slowly shifted to hushed whispers of the Midnight Channel, the discussion getting heated as Kanji began to hear more and more about what happened to Yukiko and the others in their small group. To relieve the tension in the air Souji changed the subject to their personal struggles with the idea of Personas and what exactly they could be. Their conversation dwindled to silence as their meal was placed in front of them, Kanji's face lighting up as he took in the scent of the food. Souji wasn't surprised to see Kanji finish the special but, in the end, he would have to try another day to overcome the challenge.

"Looks like the streetlights are coming on," Souji sighed, catching sight of the street as another customer arrived. He gave Kanji a smile as he stood, "I should get going."

Kanji nodded and followed after his upperclassmen, both pausing at the door when they noticed it was still raining. "Man, doesn't look like it'll let up; you think we should watch the Midnight Channel tonight??"

"I think so." Souji opened his umbrella and looked at Kanji, "I'll walk you home."

"I-I'm just up the street, Senpai; I can make it without a problem."

"The rain is still coming down pretty hard and the last thing any of us need is a cold. Now come on." Souji stepped out into the rain and Kanji grudgingly followed, opting not to fight with the umbrella and hunch over to accommodate. "Thanks for coming with me; I don't see you all that much."

Kanji's face slowly took on a rosy hue and he gave a soft smile, "Yeah, it was pretty nice." Their paces slowed as they came to the Tatsumi Textiles storefront. They stood in silence, both looking at each other but neither one moving. As Souji opened his mouth to bid farewell Kanji cleared his throat, "Senpai, there's something that I think I need to tell you."

Souji gave the bleach blonde boy a bright smile, "What's up?"

Kanji rubbed the back of his neck and took a step closer to the upperclassman, "I-I think I like you." A look of confusion crossed Souji's face as he looked up into Kanji's eyes but the confusion quickly melted into surprise as the bleached blond leaned forward and kissed him softly. The umbrella tumbled to the ground with a loud clatter and the two were quickly becoming drenched in the downpour. A million thoughts ran through Souji's mind as he closed his eyes, giving into the kiss and reaching up to hold the underclassmen in place.

Upon feeling the touch of Souji's hand on his neck Kanji pulled away as sudden as he began the kiss, his face red with embarrassment and his heart pounding in his chest. "Sorry," he muttered, turning his eyes away. "I don't know what made me do that.

"Its okay, Kanji-kun," Souji stammered. He swallowed hard, hoping to ease the butterflies in his stomach. "I kinda-"

"Kanji, is that you?" The door to the textile shop slid open and Kanji's mother appeared in the doorway. She looked at Kanji and then at Souji, a soft smile crossing her aged face. "I thought I heard voices! My, you're both soaking wet; why don't you and your friend come inside to dry off, Kanji."

"Ma," Kanji growled, "Senpai has to get home."

Mrs. Tatsumi's eyes sparkled slightly, "He'll have caught a cold by the time he made it back home." She took Souji's hand and smiled, leading the boy into the textile shop as Kanji cursed beneath his breath and retrieved the fallen umbrella. "Why don't you call home and tell them where you are. I can get you something warm to drink while you wait for your clothes to dry. Kanji, dear, can you see if we have any clean towels lying around?"

Kanji pushed past the two and disappeared, cursing loudly as he stomped through the house. "You don't have to do this," Souji smiled. "I can get home pretty quick and I don't think Kanji really likes the idea of me staying here."

"Oh, he's taken a shine to you," Mrs. Tatsumi said with a chuckle. Souji could feel his cheeks grow warm as a deep blush crossed his face. "It's always 'Senpai this' or 'Senpai that.' Kanji doesn't have many friends and I'm thinking he really enjoys your company." She led Souji deeper into the shop, which slowly gave way to their living space, continuing to talk about Kanji's past and the issues he seemed to have lately. "Why don't you give your family a call? I'll get you something warm to drink and see if Kanji has found a towel for you."

Souji fumbled with his cell phone, muttering to himself as he tried to find a dry spot on his clothes to wipe away the water. Surprisingly Doujima answered the house phone and after a short conversation told him to make it home as soon as he could, the streets weren't that safe and, being a detective he was on edge about having Souji walking around so late. He tried his best to ease his uncle's mind but it didn't seem to do much good.

"Heads up." Souji had little time to react to the warning, finding a towel suddenly hitting him in the back of the head. He pulled it off his head and turned to give Kanji a playful glare but paused despite himself; Kanji had changed out of his wet clothes and into a pair of loose fitting black jeans and black muscle shirt, his hair no longer slicked back but ruffled from the obvious action of drying it. Souji felt himself blush once more as he noticed that he was staring at the underclassmen. He looked away and tried to hide his flustered expression behind the guise of wiping his face.

"I found some old clothes that you can change into while your clothes dry," Kanji said as he held out a pair of folded pants and a worn shirt. "The bathroom is down the hall." Souji muttered his thanks as he took the clothes and disappeared towards the lavatory. Kanji balled his hands into fists, punching the wall with grunt, '_What was I thinking? I should apologize_.'

"I have some tea in the kitchen." Kanji looked at his mother and gave a sigh; she knew that look. "What wrong?"

Kanji shook head, "Nothing, Ma. Just have a lot on my mind."

Mrs. Tatsumi gave her son a soft smile and patted him on the shoulder, "What ever is bothering you just know that things will get better in the end. I'll get your friend's clothes and dry them, you go have some tea."

A pot of tea sat on the table along with two cups waiting to be filled. Kanji sat crossed legged and poured himself a cup, welcoming the warmth that quickly radiated into his hands. He took a sip of the tea, catching a glimpse of Souji entering the room out of the corner of his eye. The towel he had tossed at his upperclassman was draped over his shoulders though he appeared to be as dry as he could be; neither boy spoke as they drank tea and the feeling of unease was slowly becoming too much.

"Senpai," Kanji swallowed hard, "about what happened. . . ."

Souji looked at his reflection in the tea and took a deep breath, "Yeah, I've been thinking about that myself."

"I'm sorry if I-"

"I didn't really mind it."

Kanji's face quickly flushed with embarrassment, "WH-what?" His mind began to race with a myriad of questions but he didn't know where to start. He averted his gaze and took a drink of his tea to ease his stomach.

A nervous laugh escaped Souji and he ran a hand through his hair, "I was a little surprised and, well, confused but, you know, it felt right."

"It felt right?" Kanji looked up in surprise his face once more growing rosy. Souji gave him a soft smile and he returned it, looking bashfully down at his cup of tea. Reality tugged at his mind, though, and his mood seemed to grow somber. "What happens now?"

"I really don't know," Souji shrugged.


	2. Chapter 2

The Midnight Channel was nothing but static that night, thanks to the fact that Kanji had been saved from whatever fate had been waiting, but another rainy day would soon be coming. The two boys had parted ways well before that time, both unsure of what they were to do now that certain things had come to light but agreeing not to mention it to anyone. They kept their distance the next day, both deciding against hanging out with their friends to avoid any awkwardness that could still linger between them. Souji tried not to think too hard on any of it but found that his mind would slowly go back to the instant they kissed, causing his heart to race and butterflies to come to life in his stomach.

It was the second day after that night when Kanji sought Souji out during their lunch period. The silver-haired upperclassmen strolled down the stairs, his hands in his pocket and his eyes distant as he seemed lost in thought. Kanji swallowed any doubt that lingered in his mind and trotted down the hall, "Hey, Senpai." Souji seemed to snap out of his thoughts, a look of surprise passing over his face that quickly made way for a bright smile. That smile made Kanji's heart flutter for a moment as his own memories seemed to take sway. He cleared his throat and gave a smile, "I was wondering if you wanted to get together after school so we could talk?"

Souji nodded, "Sure!"

"Re-really," Kanji stammered. "Just meet me up on the roof, it should be pretty empty."

"Okay." Souji smiled to himself as Kanji walked away, happy to find that things wouldn't be so awkward between the two of them. He noticed Yukiko walking merrily towards him out of the corner of his eye. She beamed happily, giving a wave to her classmate which caused her to blush ever so slightly. Souji smiled and gave her a nod as she came to a stop beside him and fidgeted slightly. "Is everything okay, Yukiko?"

"Oh, yes," Yukiko smiled. "I was just hoping that you and I could spend some time together. I have a new recipe I'd like you to try." She stumbled over her words as she spoke, trying hard to hide her nerves.

Souji gave a sigh and shook his head, "I'm sorry, Yukiko, I just made plans to hang out with Kanji-kun. How about we spend some time together tomorrow afternoon?"

A pained look drifted into her eyes but she tried her best to smile cheerfully. "Tomorrow it is! This will give me more time to prepare." She hurried up the stairs slouching slightly with disappointment with the denial of time spent together. Souji rubbed the back of his neck as he watched her, feeling a little bad that he had turned her down but he had made plans with Kanji only moments before.

The rest of the school day was uneventful enough and as the bell rung to signal the day's end the students quickly piled out of their classrooms. Souji gathered his things and slipped out into the hall, only stopping to tell Yumi that he had to miss the Drama meeting that day. She shrugged in response and said she'd probably be missing it as well, deciding to go to the hospital for the afternoon. He wished her the best before he bounded up the two flights of stairs.

Souji let the door close behind him as he shielded his eyes from the glaring sun; despite it being a clear afternoon the roof was empty of lingering students. "Senpai." He turned towards the direction he heard the call and spotted Kanji peering around the corner of the wall, half hidden in the shade of the rooftop building. Souji trotted over to him smiling, "Are we hiding from people?"

Kanji gave a nervous smile, "Just a little worried I guess. That and I wanted some shade."

"What did you want to talk about," he ducked into the shadow beside Kanji and put his bag down. Souji knew full well what the topic of discussion would be but he felt it was better that Kanji brought it up.

"It's about the other and what happened," Kanji said in a hushed tone. "What are we going to do; what's gonna happen?"

Souji sighed and leaned a shoulder against the wall, "I don't really know myself. Do you want there to be something between us?"

Kanji's face quickly grew red. The thought had crossed his mind the other night but he guessed it would be wishful thinking on his part. "Well, yeah," he laughed nervously. "But, you know, should we tell anyone?"

"That may not be a good idea," Souji bit his lip. "I think this may have to be something just between the two of us."

Kanji understood what Souji was getting at, a slight twinge of anger rising in him as he remembered Yosuke's comments. He didn't want it to continue let alone for his senpai to have to endure the same thing. They stood in silence, looking at each other and unsure of what to do next; neither of them had dated before and they didn't know exactly how to go about things. There was one thing that Kanji knew though, and that was the growing urge to kiss Souji again.

Throwing his nerves to the wind Kanji quickly pressed his lips against those of the silver haired student. Souji tensed for a moment, shocked at the sudden change of events but as the kiss continued and his heart began to race he gave into it. He grabbed a handful of Kanji's hair, his palms and fingers wrapped in the tacky feeling of hair gel as he returned the kiss feverishly; Souji soon felt his back against the wall as Kanji leaned into his body. The underclassmen stopped the kiss to press his lips against Souji's neck, the silver haired student letting out a gasp as Kanji nipped at his neck.

"Ka-Kanji," Souji whispered, "I don't think we should be doing this here."

"I'm sorry," Kanji whispered, halting his actions. The two remained pressed together against the wall, neither one making any sort of attempt to move away. "I-I couldn't help it."

Souji smiled, "Heh, it's okay; I think we can blame it hormones." The two boys shared a soft laugh as they tried to calm themselves down. In the midst of that laugh, though, they heard an echoing slam as the door to the roof was wrenched open. Neither student moved as they strained to listen and discern who could be there.

"He turned you down?" Both recognized Chie's voice and they both tensed at the idea of one of their teammates being so close to such a scene.

"He said he was hanging out with Kanji-kun today and that we could spend tomorrow together." Souji rested his head against the wall as he heard Yukiko, Kanji tossing him a worried glance and slowly moving away from his senpai. "I don't think he really turned me down but it still kinda hurt."

"You shouldn't worry about it, Yukiko," Chie seemed like she was trying her best to cheer up her friend. "Kanji needs a friend and there isn't anyone better than our leader!"

"I suppose you're right but I'm a little nervous about the idea. I mean with what Kanji-kun's shadow said and that place, it really makes you wonder." Souji shifted his eyes to Kanji; anger seemed to be welling in his eyes as he stared at the ground. He reached for his hand but Kanji denied the attention. "Don't give me that look Chie. If Kanji-kun likes guys, that's fine but it worries me that Souji wants to hang out with him."

"Oh come on, Yukiko, it's not like you can become gay by hanging out with one. You know, you shouldn't be worrying about it anyway; he seems to like you."

"You think so?" The door to the roof opened again and the conversation between the two girls quickly faded.

Kanji furrowed his brow, "Guess I know what Yukiko-senpai really thinks about me." He ran his hands through his hair, trying to smooth it out as best he could.

"No one said it would be easy." Souji pushed himself off the wall and grabbed his bag, watching as Kanji glowered. He gave a heavy sigh, "I'll see you later." He kissed the younger boy on the cheek as consolation gesture before turning and walking away.

"Damn," Kanji muttered, slumping to the ground. He lay in the increasing shadow and tried to calm his anger as he watched clouds begin to roll in. "I can be such an idiot," Kanji spat. "Now I gotta apologize to him, but how." His mind went into overdrive as he tried to figure out ways to apologize to his senpai. '_Cards are just stupid and flowers are too girly. Maybe I could make him something_.' A slight smile tugged at his lips as the idea seemed pleasing. Kanji climbed to his feet and decided to head straight home and get to work on something.

**********

"Let me just change my shoes and we can get going to the inn." Souji trotted past the thinning mass of students as they slowly stepped out into the rain. He was surprised that Yukiko was still willing to hang out seeing how she seemed to leave so quickly on rainy days; then again she seemed adamant about spending time together. Souji opened his shoe locker and paused, noticing something sticking out of one of his shoes. He pulled out both shoes and peered at the object; it looked like a handmade key chain.

"Is everything alright," Yukiko asked as she peered over Souji's shoulder. She watched as he pulled out the keychain, turning it over and finding the symbol for his name written rather nicely. "Oh wow! It seems like you have a secret admirer." She giggled at the idea, though she scolded herself for not doing something similar.

Souji smiled to himself as he admired the present, having a decent idea who could've given it to him as he caught a familiar scent off it. He slipped the keychain in his pocket and quickly switched his shoes, noticing that Yukiko had slipped away to retrieve her own. Souji took the opportunity to grab his cell-phone and send a message to Kanji. "**Thanks. Its nice**."

It took only a moment for the reply to arrive. "**No problem**."


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Note: *flop* Gah, this took me a bit longer to write then I expected since I actually used line from the game to fill this. XP So yeah, Camping Trip time! I changed a few lines around to make it flow better and so that Souji isn't as silent as he was in the game. I'm also sensing I may have a pattern showing up in the chapters but that'll fix itself soon enough.

Thanks for the reviews so far, I'm happy people are enjoying this!

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The next week and a half was an unspoken torture for Souji and Kanji, having to balance some level of 'normality' while their friends were around and having time alone with each other. They hid their growing relationship under the guise of Souji helping Kanji with his school work. Yosuke still made comments, much to Kanji's increasing anger, but it seemed to relieve Yukiko of her doubts as to why they would be spending so much time with each other. Kanji's mother welcomed the sight of her son having such a nice friend, often asking the silver haired student if he'd stay over for dinner. Doujima, on the other hand, seemed a little weary of the friendship and warned his nephew not to get into trouble with the kid.

Their usual weekend plans had to be put on hold due to the school nature event taking up their time. They were off put with the idea of not being able to spend much time together but both figured they could make do. Souji spent the day with Yosuke, Chie, and Yukiko picking up trash on the mountain and then submitting himself to what Yosuke had dubbed 'Mystery Food X.' The girls weren't too happy with either of their reaction and everyone ended up returning to their tents without an evening meal.

"Damnit . . . I'm so hungry," Yosuke groaned as he and Souji shuffled towards their tent. He continued to grumble to himself as he threw open the tent, letting out a cry of surprise. "How the hell did you end up in here?" Souji peered over Yosuke's shoulder and wore the same surprised expression; Kanji sat in their tent, a mixed look of surprise and embarrassment on his face as well.

"My teacher threatened to hold me back a year if I didn't show," Kanji spat. He moved to one side to allow the two boys access to their sleeping bags. He exchanged a nervous glance with Souji as the silver haired boy sat beside him but he quickly regained his composure. "And the first-year's tent is all quiet, like someone died."

Yosuke sighed and got comfortable on top of his sleeping bag, "Well, if you were in there with 'em, I'm not surprised."

Kanji glanced around and paused, "Is it just you two in this tent?"

"The other guys called in sick," Yosuke grumbled, "smart move."

"So it's okay if I hang out here?"

Souji smiled, "Stay as long as want."

"You're a stand up guy, Senpai." Kanji returned the smile and stretched out his legs, retracting them slightly when he noticed Yosuke giving him a displeased expression. "Don't worry; I won't make any trouble for you. They won't catch me unless we raise a ruckus."

Yosuke hung his head in silent defeat, once more heaving an annoyed sigh. "Alright, alright," he motioned to the other side of Souji, "You can sleep over there."

Kanji glanced behind him and gave both of the older boys a slight pained look. "Dude, there's a huge rock under there. How'm I supposed to sleep; its gonna hurt like hell."

"Pipe down," Yosuke hissed. "Didn't you say weren't going to make any noise?"

Souji rolled his eyes. "Yosuke, just move a little further back."

The brunette student shook his head and crossed his arms over his chest. "Nope, there's a slope just past here. I'd roll down the hill in my sleep. If you don't like here, go back to the first-year tent."

Kanji frowned and turned his attention to Souji. "Hey, wasn't your teach some guy called King Moron?" Both boys nodded which caused Kanji to give a slight groan. "That guy stopped me outside earlier, and he pissed me off so bad I was about to lose it." His hands slowly balled themselves into fists as he recalled the conversation; he hadn't been expecting anything like that to happen and it had caused his mood to sour for most of the day. "He was going on and on about when I was in middle school when he doesn't know shit about any of that; not only that, he was bullshitting about how I'd be expelled immediately if I cause trouble."

Souji let out a soft chuckle. "Yeah, that guy's set a speed record for jumping to conclusions."

"Check this out, right?" Kanji scooted forward, crossing his legs and motioning for Souji and Yosuke to lean forward. "I heard it from a guy in my class. He said that asshole was talking shit about the two girls who died."

"King Moron was talking about Ms. Yamano and Saki-senpai," Yosuke asked, cocking an eyebrow.

Kanji gave a quick nod, "It was like, 'It's no surprise that people who are unfaithful or run away from home meet a bad end.'" Kanji's voiced trailed off as he noticed Yosuke's expression darken as he took in what had been said. He bit his lip, trying to think of something to soothe the anger that seemed to be welling in the brunette. "I dunno," Kanji shrugged, "maybe he was exaggerating. Everyone seems to hate that son of a bitch Morooka."

"Damn," Yosuke growled. He punched the ground beside him and looked away angrily. "I can just picture him saying that. He never shut up about me either when I moved here last year, not that I remember anything he said."

"Even if it's a little true, it still pisses me off," Kanji griped. "The dickhead's a damn teacher, for god's sake."

Yosuke waved his hand and reached for a small box beside his bag, "Ahhh, don't waste your energy getting pissed at that clown." He popped open the box and slowly began to eat its contents.

"Yeah, you got a point." Kanji's voice trailed off as he noticed that Yosuke was consuming something. "Wait a sec, what're you eating?"

"An-animal crackers," Yosuke mumbled as he popped another piece into his mouth.

"What the-," Kanji reached for the box but Yosuke moved out of underclassman's reach with a smile. "Those are mine! Damnit, I was so pumped about finding the penguin today."

"Penguin," Souji and Yosuke asked in unison.

Kanji narrowed his eyes, "The secret animal cracker. You were eating them and didn't even know that?"

Yosuke swallowed hard as he met Kanji's angry glare, "A-are you serious?" He held out the box but Kanji silently refused. "Well, you shoulda said something," Yosuke mumbled. "This isn't gonna fill me up. Let's just go to sleep."

"That's all you got to say for yourself after taking my snacks?" Kanji gave the upperclassmen a disheartened look as the small lamp was turned off.

The small group was silent except for the shuffling of sleeping bags to make room for the extra body. Kanji could feel his heart racing in his chest as he lay down, noticing how close his senpai was. As if realizing the same thing Souji turned his head to look at the bleach blond boy. He gave Kanji a smile barely detectable through the veil of darkness but he knew that it had been seen when he felt the other boy's hand graze across his leg in an attempt to find his hand.

"Kanji, don't you have more space on your side?"

The sound of Yosuke's voice caused Kanji to panic and quickly pull his hand away. "I can't sleep over there or my back's gonna break," he replied with a deep breath. He rested an arm over his forehead, damning the whole situation to begin with.

"Oh. . . Okay." Yosuke shifted in his sleeping bag, making it obvious to his companions that something was bothering him. The lamp was turned on without warning, temporarily sending all three boys into blinking fits as their eyes tried to adjust to the light. "Hey, Kanji, why'd you come to this tent?"

Kanji propped himself up on his elbows, "Huh? I already told you." The two looked at each other in silence, causing Souji to shift uncomfortably as he had a feeling what was to come next. "Geez," Kanji laughed, "'s wrong with you?"

Yosuke took in a deep breath, "This is as good a time as any, so, I-I want you to be honest with us. A-are you really, you know?"

"Am I really what," Kanji sat up as his voice seethed with anger.

"What I mean is, um," Yosuke began to stutter. "Are we going to be safe a-alone with you?"

"Wha-?" Kanji launched himself to his feet, causing both Souji and Yosuke to give muffled cries of surprise. His mind was racing a mile a minute, wondering if Yosuke had caught him trying to reach for Souji's hand. Kanji could feel his body shaking as a mixture of fear and anger coursed through him. "Wh-wh-what the hell is that supposed to mean? I-I already told you guy's I'm not like that!"

Yosuke scrambled to his feet and Souji followed, more as a precaution than anything else. "W-well then why are you all hot and bothered about it," the brunette spat. "That's just more suspicious."

"Hell no. We settled this already, damnit," Kanji snarled. He caught sight of Souji's surprised expression, trying to force himself not to blush in response. He shook his head and met Yosuke's questioning look, "Right now I'm, well, h-how do I put this?"

"Oh god, don't trail off like that," Yosuke cringed. "You're freaking me out."

"I'm trying to tell you that I have no problems being around girls now."

"Prove it." Those two words shut Kanji up for a moment, his face going red as he looked anywhere but at the two other boys. Yosuke nodded and elbowed Souji, "'Cause if you can't we're gonna be stuck here all night, half scared to death."

Kanji clicked his tongue and shot Yosuke a death glare, "Tch. to hell with this. If that's what you really think of me, then I'm gonna go hit the girls' tent right now."

"Huh?" Souji shook his head desperately, "That's a little extreme. You don't have to go that far. They'll expel you if they find you."

"Yeah, and don't tell me you forgot," Yosuke added. "King Moron's got his eye on you."

"Like that would stop a man like me," Kanji barked. He turned around violently and made his way for the tent's opening.

Yosuke grabbed Souji by the arm, forcing the student to look at him. "Dude's seriously going for it; you gotta stop him."

"Don't do this Kanji."

The sound of Souji's voice caused Kanji to pause but he shook his head. "Y'think I'm gonna put up with this crap? I'll show you guys. To hell with King Moron; no one's stopping Kanji Tatsumi, damnit," he roared. Kanji stomped out of the tent, grumbling loudly.

"Uh, hey, w-wait," Souji cried. He scrambled out of the tent, ignoring Yosuke's attempts to stop him from following the younger student. Darkness closed in quickly around Souji and he faltered before stumbling down the path. All of the other tents were dark and the soft sounds of sleeping students drifted through the warm night air. Souji strained to listen for the sounds of footsteps or Kanji's loud grumbling as he searched for the girls.

A loud curse caught Souji's attention, recognizing the voice and rushing towards it as his eyes finally adjusted to the dim moonlight. "Ka-kanji," he whispered as he hurried down the path. Kanji was sitting on the ground before him, cradling his foot and glaring at a fallen log that was the cause of his pain.

The underclassman looked up in fright but it passed as he recognized who stood above him, "S-senpai? Why did you follow me?"

Souji held out his hand and helped Kanji to his feet. "You're gonna get in trouble no matter what, you know, whether it's from the girls or from King Moron."

Kanji glowered, "But Yosuke-senpai won't-"

"To hell with Yosuke," Souji hissed. "You're letting him get under your skin too easily. I know we can't really do anything about it but you need to control your anger."

"You're right," Kanji gave a weak smile. "This is gonna be hard."

Souji returned the smile and began to reply but was suddenly silenced as Kanji clamped his hand over the silver haired boy's mouth. Both boys grew silent as they heard the voices of teachers growing closer, Souji's eyes growing wide with panic. Kanji mouthed an apology before he shoved his senpai into the nearby brush, both tumbling to the ground with a loud thud and Kanji nearly slamming into Souji. He steadied himself over his senpai, a little too frightened to move as the voices grew even closer. Neither student seemed to breathe as the teachers shuffled past them, their conversation filled with drunken giggles.

"I think we're in the clear," Kanji whispered. He slipped hand off Souji's mouth, pausing as he noticed his senpai avoiding his eyes. "You okay," Kanji whispered; it took him a moment to fully realize that he was straddling Souji. He blushed profusely, "I-I'm sorry."

"I-Its okay," Souji stuttered as he began to blush as well. He shifted uncomfortably, unable to look Kanji in the eye in fear of blushing even further. "Maybe we should get back to the tent."

"Y-yeah, maybe," it was all Kanji could muster to say as he looked down at Souji. Over the short time that they admitted to their feelings for each other he had never stopped to actually study his senpai's face and body, but no it seemed like he had all the time in the world. He could feel his heart racing as he unabashedly stared at Souji, trying to take in as much of the boy's delicate features as he could. "Damnit," he murmured.

Kanji felt his heart skip a beat as he hungrily pressed his lips against Souji's, catching the older student off guard. He ran a hand down the boy's chest and began to tug at the shirt he wore, pulling it up to expose the boy's smooth stomach. Souji let out a muffled gasp of surprise as he felt Kanji's hand against his stomach; he tried to wriggle free but the younger student kept him in place with his body. He could feel Kanji's tongue licking at his lower lip and he unintentionally complied with the boy, opening his mouth in response and allowing said tongue to slip across his own.

Trying to deny himself the sudden wave of pleasure Souji turned his head away from Kanji, almost gasping from the experience. "I really don't think we should be doing this."

"Like I care," Kanji hissed with a wicked smile. He was surprised at how much enjoyment he was feeling from the turn of events, loving the feeling of Souji nearly shuddering as he wrapped his arm around him and kissed him once more. He was drunk on the feeling and he knew that his senpai was starting to feel it too.

"It," Souji panted, cut short as he felt Kanji's begin to wander. He forcefully gathered his thoughts and tried to convince himself to ignore the pleasure, "It shouldn't be like this; not here."

Kanji's advances suddenly stopped; maybe his senpai was right. He pulled his hand away and as he moved to sit beside Souji he noticed a mixture of relief and frustration pass across his face. '_Guess I was doing something right_,' he thought. Kanji turned his eyes skyward and looked past the trees to find the few stars that were shinning through. "Do you think we're ready for something like this?"

"I'm not sure," Souji chuckled nervously, "but I think we're more than willing to try it." Kanji gave him a surprised look before bursting into laughter, obviously not expecting something like that from him. Souji smiled and pushed himself up into a sitting position, "So, are you still going to burst into the girls' tent?"

"I gotta; I told Yosuke I was going to and he's going to expect to hear something from the girls tomorrow," Kanji sighed. He suddenly blushed and hung his head, "I'm gonna have to wait a little bit though."

Souji understood what Kanji was hinting at and sighed, "I know what you mean. I'll stay here with you until you're ready to go; then I can head back to the tent." A smile crossed Kanji's face and he put his hand over Souji's, both of them turning their eyes to the night sky to watch the stars.


	4. Chapter 4

**!!Author's Note!!**: Guess this is more of a warning then a note. Without saying too much Kanji and Souji end up with a little 'alone' time so the rating for this chapter has gone from T to M. I also do want to apologize if the writing is odd or awkward……it's my first time really writing this stuff but, damnit, I had to do it. So, I hope you enjoy this nonetheless!

* * *

Souji and Kanji followed close behind Yosuke as they walked towards Marukyu Tofu, Yosuke seeming to have a bounce in his step as they came closer to the shop. The night before the Midnight Channel had shown someone and Yosuke convinced the others that the next victim was going to be Rise Kujikawa, an idol that was taking a hiatus. Souji found it hard to deny the possibility of the girl being the next victim after seeing an interview during dinner only hours before midnight. The girls agreed with the idea and urged them to check it out but, oddly enough, they seemed to be preoccupied with something else.

The storefront was busy with onlookers trying to get a peek at the idol but it seemed like they weren't finding what they had hoped for. Souji slowed his pace as he recognized the person waving traffic along; it was Adachi, his uncle's partner. He felt a slight lump in his throat, wondering if his uncle was near by. He hadn't told Dojima that friend he was tutoring was Kanji since he knew that the detective was less then happy with the boy in general.

"Huh?" Yosuke came to a stop only a few feet away from Adachi, glancing at the passing cars and then at the storefront. "Um, Mr. Detective, did something happen?"

Adachi jumped slightly and looked at the boys, "Oh, it's you guys." His shoulders slumped as he let out a groan, rotating his right arm in an attempt to stretch it. "These gawkers keep streaming in with their cars, trying to park in the middle of the shopping district."

Kanji cocked an eyebrow, "Why's that?"

"Don't you know? Rise Kujikawa's here." He glanced over his shoulder, his eyes sparkling slightly, "Hey, did you see her already? Is she there? Which is it?"

"Huh?" Kanji shook his head, "We're askin' why a plainclothes detective is here doin' traffic control."

Adachi's eyes widened and he gave an embarrassed smile. "Oh, uh, well the Inaba Police Department isn't that big, and we don't have enough staff." His voice trailed off as he looked at Kanji, catching an annoyed look in the teenager's eye. Adachi's smile slowly faded, "Well, I still have work to do, so I'll see you later." He turned on his heel sharply and hurried down the street.

Yosuke groaned, "Dude, you managed to scare off a police detective on active duty."

"I wasn't trying to scare the guy," Kanji retorted, "I just said what I was thinking."

"But you're right," Souji said, trying his best to stop any impending argument. "It's weird for the police to come out like this. Do you guys think the police suspect that Rise might be the next target too?"

Kanji and Yosuke exchanged glances as they both seemed to mull over what Souji just asked. They began to reply but their voices were quickly drowned out by a barked command from Marukyu. "Alright, clear out." Ryotaro Dojima seemed to appear out of nowhere as he waded through the crowd, a frown set on his face. "Hey Adachi," his voice trailed off and his frown seemed to grow. "Damnit, I told him not to leave his post."

"Isn't that your uncle?" Yosuke whispered.

Dojima seemed to quickly find the boys, and his angry made way for slight confusion, "What are you guys doing-" He stopped in mid-sentence as his eye met Kanji. The bleach blonde student frowned beneath the detective's gaze as he could only assume what the man was thinking. "Kanji Tatsumi; Are you friends with them?"

"Like it's any of your business," Kanji replied as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"If you say so," Dojima muttered. He looked at Souji, the boy quickly averting his eyes which caused even more suspicions to rise in the detective's mind. "So I'll ask again: What are you doing here?"

"Uh, w-we're just passing by," Souji's stammered.

Yosuke seemed to pick up on his friend's nervousness and jumped into the conversation, "W-well, who wouldn't wanna come check it out if they found out an idol's family ran an ordinary tofu store? I'm, uh, a big fan." He cracked a weak smile that didn't seem to ease any of Dojima's doubts. He glanced at Souji and Kanji, both not seeming to pick up on the fact that he desperately needed some back up.

"Fine," Dojima sighed. "But remember, she might be a celebrity but this is her home. Try not to bother them too much." He shook his head and began to stroll away, not stopping to remind Souji to be home early that night.

The silence between the three friends was short lived as Kanji turned to Souji. "That cop's your uncle, eh? So what the hell was that all about, are you guys under suspicion?"

"Well, they did take us in once," Yosuke ran a hand through his hair. "But we can't just tell him everything, right? If we tell them anything about the other world we only look more suspicious. They'll be watching us all the time." Kanji shrugged in response and turned his attention to the store as they all heard a few people complaining that Risette wasn't around. Yosuke mumbled something as he glared at the noise makers, obviously not happy with the crowd, "She's not here, seriously?"

Kanji tossed Yosuke a grin, "You sound like the world's about to end."

"Shuddup," Yosuke spat. "Anyway, now that all those people are gone we might as well check inside. I'll buy something."

The three boys slipped into the store, trying to help Yosuke figure out what he should buy and if they should purchase something themselves. Kanji seemed to figure out what would be best for the upperclassman and explained what ganmodoki as best as he could. They looked around the cases with the shop's goods, noticing a lone figure working. Yosuke let out a sigh of defeat and tossed Souji a glance that said they should leave.

Kanji rolled his eyes, "'scuse me."

An old woman slowly walked in from the back of the store, a soft smile on her face as she saw the new customers. It was the figure that Kanji addressed that answered, turning to face them, "What?" Most of her auburn hair was delicately hidden beneath the handkerchief and her forehead was dotted with sweat. She gave Kanji a wide-eyed look as he strolled up to her and looked her up and down.

"Are you Rise," Kanji asked.

"Yeah, so," she replied, crossing her arms over her chest. Yosuke's seemed to widen to the size of saucers as he heard her speak, racing up to Rise with a bright smile. She gave him a worried look, "What do you want?"

"Huh?" Yosuke quickly snapped himself out of his star-struck stupor and blushed profusely, "Oh, sorry, um, some tofu please!"

Rise's face softened slightly as she gave Yosuke a smile, "Which kind?" It seemed like his mind went blank as he opened his mouth to reply. He bit his lip in response to the action and looked around. "If you're going to eat it by itself, you should go with silken," Rise explained. "Momen's better for cooking, though it depends on how you use it."

Yosuke suddenly shot Kanji an irritated look, "Kanji, order something."

"Wha-" Kanji cried. "Why're you making me do it? You already picked ganmo a second ago." He shook his head and gave Rise an exasperated look, "Dude here wants three ganmodoki."

Rise looked back at Yosuke and gave him another smile, "I'll go get them." She slipped by the three of them, her smile disappearing into what seemed like an overwhelming sense of melancholy.

"Wow," Yosuke breathed, "she's nothing like she is on TV. I wonder if she's just tired."

"But it's really her," Souji said softly. "I'm glad we came. I guess that's mission comple-"

"Wait, we haven't done what we came here for yet." Yosuke cleared his throat, "H-have you noticed anything weird lately?"

"Like stalkers," Rise replied casually looking up at the three boys.

"I wouldn't say 'we' are, but yeah, dude here's a big fan," Kanji piped in.

"You little," Yosuke growled. He pushed by Souji and stood face to face with Kanji. "Why'd you let that slip?"

Kanji snorted, "Her curves, her posture, even her beautiful slim legs. Ya finished checkin' em out yet or what?" Yosuke's face grew increasingly red as the underclassman spoke, unable to say anything in his own defense.

Souji shook his head with a sigh, turning his attention to Rise who was watching with a startled expression. "Maybe you know already but it's been dangerous in Inaba lately. That's why we've been investigating some stuff." Rise didn't respond to Souji's statement, staring blankly at him as a way to urge him to continue. "Do you know about the show that comes on at midnight?"

"That thing that was on last night," Rise asked with a smile, "the Midnight Channel?"

"You know about it," Yosuke asked finally breaking away from the angry glares. "Wait, you mean you saw it last night?"

Rise gave a curt nod, "I heard rumors about it from some friends of mine. But that girl last night wasn't me; I've never been filmed wearing that swimsuit before. And the bust line, mine aren't that big." Yosuke nodded absent mindedly but stopped as he noticed what he was doing and set himself into a barrage of apologies. "Don't apologize so much," Rise laughed softly. "You're funny. But what is that show about anyway?"

Souji shrugged, "We're not sure either but we think the people who appear there are the ones who get kidnapped next."

"I know this is sudden," Kanji added, "but we're not lying."

"Huh," Rise mumbled. "So that wasn't a dream. I was tired yesterday but I couldn't sleep and it was raining so I decided to try that rumor I heard about." Her voice trailed off as she seemed to slip in her memories. It took her a moment to look back at the group, "I'll be careful, thanks."

**********

The boys left Marukyu soon after receiving their tofu, Yosuke mentioning he had to go to Junes after he received a text message. As he slowly ventured out of sight Souji gave Kanji a sideways glance and took the opportunity to ask him if he wanted to come to his place to hang out. The underclassman fidgeted a moment before remarking about Dojima but Souji reassured him that the detective would most likely be out until six. He reluctantly agreed, still nervous about entering the detective's home but interested all the same.

Much to Souji's surprise there was a note on the table when they entered the house; it seemed like Nanako went out to pick up some more food for dinner. "So, did you want to hang out here," Souji sighed, "or in my room?" Kanji's face quickly went red as the question finally sunk in and it seemed like he was at a loose for words. Souji smiled, "Don't take it the wrong way, Kanji, we're just gonna watch some TV." He didn't know if he was trying to convince himself or Kanji but the bleach blond finally admitted he was interested in seeing his senpai's bedroom.

Kanji was surprised at the lack of personal items decorating the room even despite the fact that Souji was only going to be in the room for a year. There was a stack of magazines and books on the coffee table and a few scattered near the television, along with a previous generation game system. A futon was folded in the corner near a computer that looked like it didn't see much use; all in all it didn't look like much. "Seems too clean for a guy," Kanji commented. "You're room at home like this too?"

"No," Souji laughed. He motioned towards a corner, "There is usually a small pile of dirty clothes over there." He heaved a sigh and sank into the loveseat, feeling strung out about the idea of another kidnapping in the works. He glanced at Kanji who still seemed a little baffled at the state of the room. "Come on," Souji sighed, "my room can't be that strange."

"I still think it's too tidy," Kanji mumbled. He took a seat beside Souji, propping his feet up on the coffee table as he seemed to revel in the couch's plush fabric. "Dude, this couch is amazing."

"Yeah; I've fallen asleep on it a few times when I should've been studying." Souji grabbed the remote and turned on the TV, flipping through channels before stopping on an old cartoon. Both boys were surprised that it was airing and quickly relived their childhood memories as the show played. Souji took the opportunity and moved closer to Kanji, resting his head on the boy's shoulder as he continued to watch the cartoon. Souji could feel him stiffen slightly, most likely out of surprise, but he soon put his arm around his senpai.

"You're a bastard, you know that," Kanji muttered. Souji looked up at him, a little more confused with the statement. "Bringing me to your room when no-one is home and then deciding to get all cutesy on the couch," he frowned. "That's just wrong."

A smile crept across Souji's face, "You think that's wrong?" Before the younger boy could respond Souji crawled onto his lap, straddling him easily and brought his lips so painfully close but stopping before the kiss connected. He looked into Kanji's eyes, watching as what little nervousness there had been disappeared and turned into that familiar gaze of youthful lust. "What about now," he whispered.

Kanji smirked in response, feeling that words could potentially alter such an interesting turn of events. He took the kiss that Souji playfully denied him, wrapping his arms around him to hold the silver haired boy close. In a subconscious attempt to get comfortable Souji shifted his weight slightly; the movement caused Kanji to moan in pleasure from the new sensation, breaking the kiss to let his head roll back. Souji took the opportunity to kiss the boy's neck, nipping the skin like Kanji had done to him.

"Oh man," Kanji breathed. His mind felt hazy from the pleasure and the pressure he was beginning to feel from the tightness in his pants was starting to be too much. It caught Souji off guard but he soon found himself lying awkwardly on the loveseat with Kanji on top of him. He began to unbutton Souji's shirt, his hands once more running across his senpai's smooth stomach and their legs entwining.

There was only a moment's pause for the boys as Kanji pulled his mouth away from Souji. "You okay with this?"

"Y-yeah," Souji whispered.

Kanji kissed Souji fervently once more, his hand quickly working to unzip the boy's pants. The older boy let out a gasp and pulled away from the kiss as he felt Kanji's hand slowly rubbing against his erection. The boys locked eyes; Kanji smiled slightly as Souji's breathing grew faster as he slowly pulled down his senpai's pants and boxers. "Sh-shit," Souji moaned, tossing his head back as Kanji put his hand around his throbbing member and slowly began to pump it.

"Does this feel good," Kanji whispered into his senpai's ear.

All Souji could do was nod in response, his voice seeming to be lost in the waves of pleasure. He closed his eyes and became lost in the experience, hearing himself moaning softly and feeling Kanji's hot breath against his neck took it to a new height. The only down side to the pleasure was that he was reaching the edge quickly, something he wasn't expecting to happen. Sure, he had masturbated before but having someone else touching him had brought him so close all too soon.

"I'm," Souji gritted his teeth together as that familiar feeling crept up on him. Kanji's mouth was suddenly over his, their tongues finding the other in the heated kiss. Souji let out a groan, his body tensing as he plunged over that edge, his semen spurting onto his stomach and over Kanji's hand. They slowly broke their kiss, Souji's face flushed from it all. "Wow," he chuckled, unable to really think of what to say; Kanji smiled with a soft laugh and leaned down to kiss him.

"Hey, Souji, whose shoes-" The boys froze as they heard the door open; they hadn't heard anyone come home. It seemed like they didn't have to say much for the door slammed shut as quickly at it had opened.

"W-was that-" Kanji was cut off by Souji's nod, both boys cursing beneath their breath. He hung his head, "Your uncle is gonna kill me." Kanji climbed off of the older boy with a sigh, slumping to the floor. Souji fumbled around for a moment, finding a box of tissues beside the computer and cleaned himself, a little embarrassed about the entire event. He handed the box to Kanji who had grown silent and seemed to radiate agitation.

"Souji, you and your friend come down, **now**." Dojima's voice sounded like a death knell to the boys. They had tried so hard not to get caught but within in a month of their relationship starting it seemed like it was about to end.

"Come on," Souji muttered as he fixed his clothes and hair. He helped Kanji to his feet but neither boy looked each other in the eye. "We might as well get this over with." Souji led the way, slowly walking down the stairs and peeking into the living room. He wasn't too surprised to see Dojima sitting at the edge of the couch with a beer in hand. The tension seemed to grow as the students stood in the living room, Souji with his head hung and Kanji frowning.

There was a moment of silence as Dojima glanced at them with an odd, pained look. He took a drink from his can before venturing to speak. "What the hell were you two thinking?"

"To be honest with ya," Kanji crossed his arms over his chest, "not much."

Dojima looked up with anger in his eyes, "Listen, this needs to be a serious conversation, so I don't need any of your bullshit, Tatsumi." He took another swig of the beer and gave a heavy sigh. "I just want to know what's going on."

"Well," Souji's voice wavered as he spoke, "we're kinda going out with each other."

"Really," Dojima stood slowly, rubbing the back of his neck as he looked at his nephew and then at the resident 'punk'. He never really like Kanji, seeing him all too often thanks to complaints of verbal and physical violence from the general populace. The kid hadn't changed much but for some reason he was starting to go to school normally, which had to be good but it was too early to really make anything of it. "How long have you two, um, been an item?"

Souji paused, "I think it's been about a month."

It took a moment for Dojima to put two and two together, but he finally figured out who Souji must have been studying with. He turned his attention to Kanji once more, meeting the boy's annoyed stare without a second glance. "Does your mother know about this?"

"She probably has an idea but I dunno for sure," Kanji shrugged. "Does that matter?"

"I suppose it doesn't," Dojima muttered. He couldn't get his thoughts in order; he had never been in this type of situation before but he knew it would have been easier if Souji was with a girl when he had opened the door. "Look, I don't know what to say about this. Just understand that not a lot of people are going to like this and some people need time to get used to it."

Souji nodded, getting the hint that Dojima, though a little uncomfortable, was okay with the relationship. "Thanks."

Dojima shrugged in response, "I do want to say that if you two are ever up there again lock the door, I don't care what you're doing but the last thing I need is for Nanako to walk in on something she doesn't need to see."


	5. Chapter 5

It was starting to seem like it was one thing after another; they saved Rise, they helped Teddie over come his own shadow, and then King Moron was found dead. They were no closer to the murderer than before and now it seemed like he was trying to change his tactics. Then there was Naoto Shirogane, a boy sleuth that seemed to have an inkling about their group and their connection to the murder case. Souji was growing worried about that their attempt to solve the case was beginning to become more obvious.

"You okay, Senpai?"

The sound of Kanji's voice pulled Souji out of his thoughts and back to reality. The two of them were tempting fate by spending lunch together on the roof, both wanting to see the other after such a rough couple of days. They were happy to find that the roof was empty but it made it painfully obvious that Souji had been lost to the world. "Sorry," he whispered, "just thinking about everything."

Kanji gave Souji a soft smile, "You shouldn't worry about it so much; we have things under control." He eyed the bento boxes that were still hidden away; Souji noticed the glance and flushed in embarrassment when realized how hungry they both were, handing Kanji the heavier of the two. "Wow," Kanji whistled as he opened the box. "Looks pretty fancy; you make this?"

"Y-yeah," Souji laughed. "I picked up a few things, but rice and vegetable are easy to prepare; it's the damn tonkatsu that messes me up."

The door to the roof swung open as the two began to eat, causing both boys to pause in fear. To their relief Chie appeared with a bag in hand, stretching happily in the sunlight. She stopped as she noticed the two of them, seeming surprised that there was someone else there besides her. Chie trotted towards them with a bright smile, pausing to take a look their lunches. "Oh, wow," she cried. "Those look delicious! Where did you get them?"

"Senpai made 'em himself," Kanji grinned, elbowing Souji in the side.

"I wish I could cook like that," Chie lamented as she took a seat beside the silver haired student. She pulled a prepackaged sandwich out of her bag followed by a bottle of water and pouted slightly. The three of them ate in silence, the boys wishing they had picked a more secluded spot to dine but it was too late to fix that. "What's going on between the two of you?"

Souji nearly chocked on his rice when Chie asked such a question so bluntly, forcing himself to swallow the mouthful before looking at her in surprise. "What do you mean by that?"

Chie shrugged and took a bite of her sandwich, "It just seems that you two are spending a lot of time together."

"H-he's helping me study," Kanji stammered with a flushed face.

"Oh, riiight," Chie grinned. She turned towards the boys, eyeing both of them with a questioning look. "I promise I won't tell anyone; are you two an item?" Both boys averted their eyes, suddenly seemed to find their lunches enthralling but that was answer enough for Chie. She giggled happily, looking at them with wide eyes, "Oh my god, it is true! I don't know why but that is just too cute!"

"Shut it, Chie," Kanji spat finally looking at her.

Chie took another bite of her sandwich, keeping her attention on the boys. "H-how long have you two been an item," she asked softly.

"A month," Souji murmured.

"I swear," Kanji growled, "that if anyone in school finds out about this-"

"Hey," Chie frowned, "I told you that I wouldn't say anything; a promise is a promise!" She put her half eaten sandwich back in its bag, standing and giving the boys a wink. "I'll be leaving; I didn't mean to interrupt your lunch." Before either boy could respond Chie was already walking away, a pleased smile on her face.

**********

After school they decided to go to Kanji's house with the intent to study for their upcoming tests but that plan seemed to melt away when they walked into an empty house; there was a note left explaining the reason why but it went unnoticed. The moment the door closed behind Kanji the two boys were wrapped in an embrace, kissing deeply and leaning against the wall as they held each other close. The younger boy broke the kiss and slid out of his love's grasp, slipping off his shoes and walking towards the kitchen with a wicked smile.

Souji was a little confused but driven by curiosity and burning lust he removed his own shoes and trotted after the bleach blonde. The moment he stepped into the kitchen he felt a strong hand grab him by the arm and pull him into another heated kiss. Souji let out a muffled cry of surprise as he felt himself lifted with ease and placed on the counter, the kiss never breaking. He could feel Kanji's arms slithering around his waist, holding him tightly as he opened his mouth to allow the older boy's tongue access; he took it and they both moaned into the kiss.

"Thought we were gonna study," Kanji said when he finally pulled away from the kiss.

A smile crossed Souji's face, "Looks like we were both wrong." He noticed that Kanji was no longer wearing the school's jacket, revealing the black muscle shirt he had been wearing beneath it. Souji had admired the boy's toned body from the moment he had seen it in the guise of his shadow, and was now worshiping Kanji's form in his mind. He ran a hand across the younger boy's chest, feeling the nuances of his body.

Kanji ran his hand through Souji's hair, catching his senpai's eyes as he loosened his hold on him. "What're we going to do now," he whispered. Kanji got his response when felt Souji's hand slip away from his chest and lightly caress the aching bulge in his pants. He let out a gasp in response to the touch, his eyes shutting tightly as he rested his head on his senpai's shoulder.

Without saying a word Souji slipped off the counter and pulled his hand away from Kanji, the younger boy letting out a slightly disgruntled sigh. Kanji watched his senpai through half-lidded eyes as he forcefully turned him and pushed him until the edge of the counter was digging into his back. He opened his mouth to protest as pain shot through his back but Souji caught the boy's mouth with his own in a hungry kiss, the older boy's hands working painfully slow to undo Kanji's pants. Souji moved his lips to Kanji's neck, smiling inwardly as the bleach blond seemed to hiss in response to his hand slipping into his pants and grabbing him.

What happened next was so sudden that Kanji didn't have much time to react. "Wha-," those words dwindled into a moan as Souji ran his tongue across Kanji's exposed member. "D-damn it, senpai," Kanji hissed as a shiver ran down his spine. He leaned against the counter, tangling a hand in Souji's hair as the boy slowly began to go further down his length with an oddly skilled tongue. Kanji groaned out his senpai's name as he felt the boy's mouth encase him, sucking ever so softly as he began to work his erection.

Kanji new from the start that he wasn't going to last long, the situation was too new and the sensation was over powering. He gripped a handful of Souji's hair tightly as he moved in time with his senpai's bobbing head. "S-senpai, I'm gonna," the words were quickly lost as his body tensed and he let out a guttural moan. Souji didn't pull away at the warning but began to swallow the moment he felt the substance hit his tongue.

Souji slowly stood; his gaze met Kanji's when the bleach blonde finally opened his eyes. They shared a smile, Kanji pulling his senpai into a tender embrace. "If we're planning on getting anything done," he whispered in Souji's ear, "we should head to my room." He playfully licked the older boy's ear, smiling happily as he felt his body twitch in response.

They pulled away from each other, Souji dashing to the front to retrieve his bag and Kanji slowly walking towards his room as he redid his pants. Neither of them can deny that they made an attempt to study but it seemed like the whole idea had been doomed from the start. The boys sat on the floor with their books open since Kanji didn't have a desk but they took the opportunity to be close to each other. Souji was shifting uncomfortably during their attempts at studying, the tightness in his pants fogging his thoughts as he hoped for some sort of relief.

Kanji's hand was suddenly caressing Souji's cheek, causing the older boy to jump in surprise at the sudden contact. They looked at each other with lust still twinkling in their eyes but neither one spoke. Souji captured one of Kanji's fingers in his mouth and sucked on it softly; he smiled inwardly as he heard his breathing change ever so slightly with the action. Kanji slowly pushed his senpai to the floor and rested on top of him as the silver haired boy took another finger into his mouth.

"If you keep doin' that we'll be stuck like this for a while," Kanji whispered as he removed his fingers from the boy's mouth.

"I don't see a problem with that idea," Souji replied with a brazen smile. He wrapped his arms around Kanji's neck and pulled him closer so their lips could finally meet. Souji let out a moan as he felt the younger boy's hand begin to caress the bulge in his pants, arching his back slightly from the sheer pleasure that swept over him.

A soft laugh escaped Kanji as he broke the kiss and ran his tongue down his senpai's ear. "Guess you really want this," he murmured with a smile.

Souji's response was lost in another moan as he felt Kanji work off his pants and take hold of him. He was still worked up from their time in the kitchen and the feeling of Kanji's lips and tongues moving from his ear to the sensitive skin of his neck was threatening to end their fun quickly. Souji decided not to fight the pleasure and let finally let down his mental barriers; he didn't expect to feel Kanji's weight suddenly lift from his body and feel his mouth slowly encase his manhood. That was all it took; Souji's body tensed as he moaned and Kanji silently swallowed the result of his work.

Heavy breathing filled the room as Souji slowly came down from that moment of ecstasy. Kanji slowly slid up his body and planted a kiss on the boy's flushed cheek. Souji smiled softly but couldn't do much else to express his satisfaction.

Kanji returned the smile, "I love you, senpai."

* * *

**Note**: This took a lot longer to write because my first two copies of this chapter seemed to be eaten by my computer so this rewrite kinda suffered compared to my originals, but its still good. D: I just want to give my readers a heads up: the chapters following this one will probably contain spoilers if you haven't beaten the game. I will also be doing fight scenes since things are vital from here on and this story really revolves around Souji and Kanji trying to love one another in the midst of the chaos.

Don't worry, though, there will be lovey-dovey stuff still. :D


	6. Chapter 6

**Note**: To battle! This was harder to write then I thought it would be. While in game you can only have a total of 4 people in battle in reality, each and everyone one of them would be doing something. So they do! Next chapter we'll be having the Summer Festival! :D

**Edit**: Fixed my mistake with the missing question marks! Thanks again Yunakitty!

* * *

They were tired; over the past two hours the group had fought through countless battles in an effort to draw closer to the murderer they were seeking. Despite rushing from floor to floor through a dungeon that mimicked old games they took their time in the battles in an attempt to figure out tactics in this final battle. One thing they knew for sure was that Rise couldn't be much help fighting wise but she could help with producing items that they needed. She had been in charge of carrying the restoratives they all purchased and, if things looked dire, healing the wounded herself.

The group's physical fighters were Kanji and Chie, both wearing that badge with pride and using the elemental powers of their persona as a last resort. Yosuke and Yukiko were the opposite; their focus would be on their elemental attacks, only reverting to physical damage if it proved that their attacks were useless. Teddie agreed to be in charge of healing and doing anything he could to boost the group's defense in times of need. Souji, though, was the wild card; with the strange ability he had to command multiple personas he could be of aid on any front but decided to help Teddie with the healing unless he was needed to fight.

Souji slowly slipped to the ground, resting his head against the strange 8-bit wall in an attempt to catch his breath. His body and mind were in pain but they were too close and no one wanted to return to their world to recuperate; they wanted to capture Mitsuo as soon as they could. Souji glanced at his teammates, watching as each one followed his example and sunk to the ground to rest for a moment. Despite their bruises and scrapes no one asked for a bandage but resigned themselves to suffer in what little pain they had.

Rise trotted over to a nearby door, her eyes wide and her head cocked to the side as she placed a well manicured finger to it. She focused silently, the shimmer of her persona appearing around her as she examined what was out of eyesight. A gasp of surprise escaped her as Himiko disappeared and she wheeled around, "He's right behind this door."

"Finally," Yosuke groaned, though smiled slightly. "I think we should wait for a few minutes before we charge in there. What do you say?"

Souji glanced at Yosuke, noticing he was eyeing him. "Sounds like a good idea," he muttered. "I don't think it would be a good idea to fight if we're feeling like crap."

"Right," Yosuke nodded and clapped his hands together. "So, about a five minute break to rest and then we can put an end to all of this."

Weak smile passed through the group as the idea of the murders coming to an end echoed in their minds. Souji looked at Kanji; he sat almost directly across from him, trying hard to avoid looking at his senpai for too long in fear of drawing any unwelcomed attention. Their relationship had been taken to another level after the younger boy had uttered those three words, 'I love you' and it was becoming harder and harder not to express their feelings for each other in public. Somehow, though, they found the restraint and hid under the guise of friendship.

After what seemed like hours Chie hopped to her feet, stretching as she eyed the door with an excited look in her eye. "I'm ready to get this over with," she grinned. The others agreed in silence, climbing to their feet and readying their weapons. There wasn't a battle cry or an attempt to say a few words of hope before they charged through the doors and into a large room. "Look," Chie cried, "There he is."

"You Mitsuo?" Kanji spat as the group came to a halt. A boy roughly their age stood with his back towards them while his double stared vacantly at the floor; neither replied. "You better be ready to pay, you bastard."

Yosuke stepped in front of Kanji as the boy started forward, shaking his head. "Wait, Kanji," he whispered. "Something's not right."

"Everyone gets on my nerves" Mitsuo snapped. "That's why I did it. What do you think of that? Say something." The double raised its eyes but said nothing. "Nobody even thought of me after the first two people. That's why I went for the third one; I killed them." There was still silence between the two. "Wh-what're you all quiet for?"

The double's eyes shifted to Mitsuo, "Because I feel nothing."

Mitsuo let out a growl and grabbed the double by the collar, "What're you talking about? Make sense damnit."

"What the-," Chie glanced at the group. "Which one's the shadow?"

"I have nothing," the double muttered. "I am nothing . . . and you are me."

"What," Mitsuo cried. "What's that supposed to mean? I'm. . . I'm not nothing."

Yosuke's eyes widened, "No! If this keeps up-"

Mitsuo suddenly wheeled around, confusion in his eyes as he realized he was no longer alone with the look-alike. "Wh-who are you guys; how'd you get in here?" The group exchanged nervous glances but no-one could figure out what to say. "Damnit, who the hell are you? What're you doing here?"

"Shut the hell up," Kanji roared. "We came after you."

"Are you the killer?" Souji demanded.

Laughter suddenly erupted from Mitsuo, "Of course I am. I don't give a damn what this imposter is saying." He glared at his double, a wicked smile on his face. "You hear that? You have nothing to do with me; get outta my sight." Mitsuo slowly turned his eyes back towards the group of students. "That goes for the rest of you too. Why'd you chase me all the way here? I'll kill you; I'll kill all of you. I can do it, you know. . . I can do anything."

"So you don't accept me," the double whispered.

Mitsuo's face suddenly twisted in pain as he fell to his knees. "What the-," he groaned. He slumped to the ground as a deep fog began to encase his shadow.

"Damnit," Yosuke spat as he held his weapons at the ready. "Here we go again."

The others quickly followed suit, Rise taking a step behind them all for protection and placing her bag on the ground. She focused on the increasing fog, feeling that familiar presence of Himiko behind her. "Get ready everyone," she cried as the fog dissipated. "Once we beat him this case is as good as closed."

"I am a shadow." An odd form hovered over the group, looking like an infant with an enlarged skull. "Come, I'll end your emptiness." The creature waved its arms and a large, 8-bit knight suddenly surrounded it.

"Is that supposed to be a game character?" Souji glanced at Yosuke.

Yosuke frowned, "How insulting can he get?"

"You'll have to destroy the outer shell first," Rise shouted.

Without another word Souji raised his hand, summoning the persona he knew as Cu Chulainn; the raven haired warrior in turn cast a spell on the group in an attempt to increase the fighter's abilities. Kanji and Chie quickly summoned their own persona's, sending them barreling towards the 8-bit creation and bringing their weapons down with incredible force. As they were told Yosuke and Yukiko quickly cast their respective elemental attacks, focusing the blasts at what they hoped were vital spots. Teddie took the opportunity to do an attack of his own, summoning a ball of ice to slam into the creation.

"We almost got it," Rise cheered. "A few more attacks and that shell should be gone."

The 8-bit warrior slowly stepped forward, unsheathing what could only be a sword that was quickly brought down onto Chie. She let out a scream and dropped to the ground, holding her arm in an attempt to keep it from moving. "Teddie," Chie cried. The bear already knew the routine and raced towards her, ointment and bandages in hand as he slid to a stop beside her. "He's a hard hitter; be careful."

"Parvati," Souji shouted, summoning a red haired woman dressed in Indian garb. The persona held a lotus blossom in one hand as she pointed the other at Mitsuo's creation, dropping the thing's defense through its spell.

Once more Kanji summoned Take-Mikazuchi, the persona slamming its lightning shaped weapon into the ground as it attacked the warrior. The 8-bit shield slowly crumbled away, causing the strange infant to drop to the ground with a shriek. With a frown Chie ran at the shadow, jumping and kicking it in the head with all of her strength. Yosuke and Yukiko continued their elemental assault as Rise used one of the emergency kits to heal everyone incase their rest from earlier hadn't helped them.

The baby let out another squeal, causing a ball of purple light to suddenly smash into the ground. The attack hit the entire group sending them sprawling to the ground with groans of pain. Another squeal erupted from the infant in an attempt to anger the students but it seemed that the pain was enough to block out the sound.

Souji was the first to crawl to his feet. He abandoned his post as healer and once more summoned his raven haired warrior, sending him to forward to bring his spear down on the creature's head. Out of the corner of his eye he watched as Yosuke and Chie stood, summoning their personas to do similar attacks. Behind them Teddie was helping Rise to her feet, both of them numbly searching for anything that could heal the group in one go. Teddie used his persona's magic to heal the group as Rise found another emergency kit. Kanji helped Yukiko to her feet; her wounds didn't seem like they healed fully but she followed the younger boy's example and they both called forth their elements.

"I can't tell if we're doing anything to it," Yosuke shouted.

Himiko quickly appeared behind Rise, "I think if everyone can get in another hit we should be able to take him down."

"Gotcha," Kanji grinned.

A soft giggle slowly came forth from the shadow as the legs and torso of the 8-bit warrior reappeared. "I-I need proof that I exist," the shadow said. "That's why, I have to kill you."

Rise let out a gasp, "You need to take him down before that shell reforms; I don't think we could handle going through this too much longer."

The group nodded in unison, each one standing straight and readying themselves for a final attack. One after the other they summoned their personas, creating a nearly non-stop chain of physical attacks and a barrage of elements. The shadow let out a shriek and crumpled to the floor, slowly disappearing into Mitsuo. No-one gave a cheer at the end but they all slumped to the floor, trying to catch their breath and slowly being healed.

After a few minutes Mitsuo groaned and sat up, rubbing his head. Yosuke frowned, "Finally awake, huh? You've been a major pain in our ass."

"What the-" Mitsuo groaned. "You guys. Who-who the hell are you guys?"

Souji furrowed his brow and climbed to his feet, "We came to capture you."

"The police are after you," Yosuke added. "They think you're the one who killed King Moron and the other two. So, are you the killer?"

Mitsuo bowed his head, "All the cases . . . all on me." He suddenly began to laugh. "That's right, I did it!"

Kanji jumped to his feet, closing the space between him and Mitsuo and lifting the boy up by his collar. "You piece of shit."

"And not just that bastard Morooka," Mitsuo grinned. "That stupid announcer and that Konishi bitch, too. I killed them all; it was all me."

The shadow behind Mitsuo slowly faded away, causing the group to gasp. "Wh-where did it go," Rise cried.

"What's going on?" Chie gasped.

Mitsuo glanced over his shoulder, laughter once more erupting from him. "It's gone. That frickin' monster disappeared. Take that, son of a bitch." His body slightly slumped in Kanji's grasp, causing the bleach blond to let out a cry of surprise.

"He's exhausted," Rise sighed. "We need to hurry and get him out of here."


	7. Chapter 7

Things had finally come to an end; Mitsuo was in custody and the police said the case was nearly closed. The group had spent the following days celebrating amongst themselves and spending their summer the way it should've been spent. Souji ended up working at Junes for a week after Yosuke had begged him to help. His time to spend with Kanji was cut ever shorter when Rise had commandeered the young boy's time in a small study group since both of them had done so poorly on the recent tests. The only way they could keep in touch during the hectic week was over the phone and both agreed that the Summer Festival couldn't come soon enough.

The girls had arrived early at the Dojima residence to pick up Nanako and take her off to get dressed in her yukata properly. Not too long after the girls left was when the guys arrived, looking rather annoyed; it became obvious that it was Teddie's ever growing chipper attitude that was souring their mood. Souji tried to lighten their moods as they strolled towards the shrine, telling them about a few of the festivals he had attended back home. Teddie was enthralled with the idea of the festivals and Kanji was surprised at how big they could become. Souji had to admit, though, he was looking forward to a small town festival.

They strolled up towards the shrine and closer to the booths. Though there were people milling about things seemed empty. "Funny," Yosuke frowned as he came to a stop, "I remember this festival being a lot more crowded. Is it because of the murders?"

Kanji nodded, "Yeah, there ain't that many people this year." He glanced around at the booths and seemed to grow a little disappointed at the sparse guests. "Well I guess you can't blame people for being scared. Haven't seen any reporters around, either; they sure are good at stirring shit up and then disappearing."

"Well, it isn't so bad to have thin crowds," Souji said with a smile.

"What is important right now is that we go get some ikayaki." Kanji smiled blissfully when he said this, seeming to drift off to some happy memory. His thoughts were quickly interrupted when Teddie jumped beside him, the boy's blue eyes wide with wonder.

"Ooh, I wanna get some too!" Teddie looked up at Kanji, his eyes sparkling and causing him to flinch at the look. "Kanji, what's ikayaki?"

Rather than try to explain the treat to Teddie, Kanji strolled towards a stall with the other boys in tow. They stood before the displays of squid and other festival food, each boy eyeing their favorite treats. Teddie seemed overwhelmed by the sight and looked at Kanji in a silent cry for help. He rolled his eyes and order two of the ikayaki, handing one to Teddie and keeping the other for himself. Souji and Yosuke bought their own, the four of them slowly strolling down the walk way as they ate their treats.

"Man, they're late," Yosuke whined between bites of squid. "Why were they meeting at Yukiko's house in the first place?"

"They were getting dressed up," Souji replied with a smile.

"They'll show up sooner or. . ." Kanji's voice trailed off in midsentence, his eyes widening in surprise.

Teddie noticed Kanji's expression and followed the boy's gaze and was soon mimicking the wide-eyed stare. "Whoa, isn't that them?"

Sure enough the girls were walking towards them, each one dressed in a new yukata. Nanako waved wildly at the group, her face glowing with joy as she carried a large bag of cotton candy and walked along side Chie. Kanji's face suddenly grew red and he turned away in response; Yosuke and Teddie, though, had the opposite reaction and stepped forward to greet the girls with wide smiles.

"Sorry we took so long," Chie said with bright smile.

"It took us some time to get dressed," Yukiko added with a sigh.

Rise nodded and gave a look of exasperation, "You have to wrap towels inside, so they're not as breezy as everyone says."

"It's kinda hard to walk," Nanako responded. Despite the complaint she still wore a bright smile, almost hugging the bag of air fluffed sugar.

Souji knelt before Nanako, catching her eye from behind the bag and gave her a smile. "You look cute in it," he whispered. He got a giggle in response as Nanako's cheeks grew rosy from embarrassment.

"Nana-chan, you look so cute!" Teddie cooed. "I'm head over heels for you!"

The rosy color in Nanako's cheeks grew darker as she let out another giggle, "Thank you."

"How do we look, Senpai?" Rise moved closer to Souji as she spoke, batting her eyes as she gave her characteristic smile. "Does the sight make your heart skip a beat?"

Souji felt his face grow warm at the sudden advance Rise made, his mind going every which way for a response. "Y-you look great in it, Rise."

Rise let out a giggle, "Ooh that slipped out so naturally! Perhaps . . . you're used to saying things like that?" She laughed again as she watched the blush of embarrassment grow darker on Souji's face. "Well, I'm still happy to hear it," she smiled.

Yosuke glanced at Kanji, finally noticing that the younger boy wasn't paying attention to the girls. "Kanji, what're you looking away for?" he said, nudging the boy in the side. "Don't tell me you're ashamed to look! What are you, a monk?"

"Th-that ain't it!" Kanji stuttered.

Another giggle escaped from Rise, "You're so cute, Kanji!"

"Hey!" The cry caught the group's attention, each one turning to the shout in surprise; Nanako let out a squeal of joy as her father strolled towards them. The detective smiled at the students, "Thanks for looking after her."

Nanako bounced towards her father, filled with joy as she held out her treat. "They bought me cotton candy!"

"Did they now?" Dojima's smile softened and the sight of Nanako's face. "Alright then, you wanna go over and do the target prac-I mean game with me?" The only response he was given by way of his daughter grabbing his hand and trying to drag him towards the game. He laughed happily, "I'll take care of Nanako from here. It's only a few times that this town gets charged up like this. You kids should go and have fun." Dojima couldn't say much more as Nanako tried to put more force in her efforts, both of them moving quickly towards the shooting game.

"Hmmm, a summer festival," Teddie mused. The other turned towards him with looks of confusion. "A couple walking together at a festival . . . unused to wearing it, the girl's yukata becomes loose . . . summer has begun."

"What kinda tagline is that . . . ?" Chie responded with an irritated frown.

Teddie clapped his hands together, "We gotta go two-by-two!"

"Two-by-two . . . ?" Yukiko repeated.

"See, I've been thinking," Teddie nodded with a grin. "It's summer, you're wearing a yukata, and we're at a festival! It's just wrong for guys and girls to walk around in a huge group like this. We should couple up while we're here! It's the natural way of things."

"Wh-what the hell are you babblin' about?" Kanji cried.

"I'm with Teddie," Rise grinned, receiving looks of surprise from the entire group. She turned to Yukiko and Chie with that bright smile, "C'mon Senpai . . . Why wear a yukata in the first place? So we have memories we can remember fondly, right? So we should pair off right away!"

Chie leaned close to Yukiko, "What a terrifying girl!" She glanced at Rise and shrugged before turning her attention back to the boys. "You got a point though . . . good memories . . ."

Yukiko nodded, "I-I'm fine too. Oh, what I mean is, um, count me in."

"Alright," Chie cleared her throat, "y-you guys decide how we'll split up."

"Seriously, it's up to us?" Yosuke squeaked, "A-alright." He motioned for the guys to crowd around him as he moved away a few feet, his face flushed from his thoughts. "Three guys and three girls . . . What should we do?"

Teddie pursed his lips together, "Three guys? Aren't you missing one?"

"What?" Yosuke cocked an eyebrow, "Me, Souji, and Kanji makes three."

"Wha-?" Teddie's mouth fell open, "You did that on purpose."

Kanji looked nervously at Souji as Yosuke and Teddie bickered with each other. "Uh, should I really do this?"

Before Souji could respond Yosuke looked at the bleached blond with a soft laugh, "Oh yeah, you can barely look at 'em."

"N-no way," Kanji growled. "I can look at 'em! I'll be a cinch, just you watch."

Yosuke shook his head and crossed his arms over his chest, "Nah, you should bail, Kanji. It'd be best for everyone that way."

"You don't believe me?" Kanji replied with a shocked expression.

"Well, I've made my decision," Teddie announced.

Kanji shot Teddie a nasty look, "Hey, wait 'til we're done for that."

Teddie smiled and shook his head. "I want Chie-chan and Yuki-chan and Rise-chan for my partner."

"That's not a decision," Souji blurted.

"Dude, you're the one who said we gotta pair off in the first place," Yosuke spat.

"I ain't joking here, Ted!" Kanji frowned, "If you try and butt in on this-"

Teddie suddenly seized Kanji by the shoulders, catching the boy off guard and wiping the frown from his face. "That's right, Kanji! This is serious business and you're a true man!" Teddie said with a stern face. "A true man wouldn't be prancing around with other girls at a place like this!"

"O-okay . . . ?" Kanji stammered.

Yosuke rolled his eyes, "How much more can you butter him up?"

"Kanji," Teddie said, ignoring Yosuke's comments. "This is a test to see if you can uphold your status as a true man!"

"Y-yeah," Kanji replied, seeming more confused than before. "You're right. Thanks, Teddie; you said it." He looked at Yosuke and then at Souji as a relieved look passed over his face. "Okay, count me out."

"Dude, come on" Yosuke groaned. "Don't fall for that."

Teddie quickly brushed by and stood before the girls, a proud grin on his face. "It's decided! I'm going with all of you!"

"Huh?" Chie cried. "What's going on?"

"Oh, well, there were too many guys so someone would have been left out," Teddie explained. "I just couldn't let that happen."

"What?" Yosuke shouted. "Why you little-"

Chie let out a laugh, "I see."

Yukiko smiled brightly, "You're so kind, Teddie."

"We let them decide and this is what we get? What a letdown." Rise frowned in disappointment, glancing at the shocked boys behind Teddie. "Oh well . . . Let's go then!"

Yosuke hung his head as Teddie walked away with the girls at his side. "We fail, huh?" He let out a sigh and shook his head, "I'm going to go play a game; you guys wanna come?"

Souji shook his head, "I'm just going to wander around a little bit. You try and have some fun, though." He waved to the brunette as he slowly walked away, his head still slightly hung from defeat. Souji turned his attention to Kanji who stood silently by his side. "What are you going to be doing?"

Kanji shrugged, finishing off the last of his ikayaki. "Dunno. With everyone going their separate ways I was going to head home early."

"Why don't you walk around with me?" Souji smiled at Kanji's startled expression, "We may not be alone but we can spend time together."

A soft smile and a nod was all the response that Souji needed. The two strolled around the small festival, trying to keep a certain distance between the two of them but finding it harder and harder to deny even holding hands. Souji talked about working at Junes and Kanji went on about the annoyances of trying to study with Rise. Neither ventured to voice missing each other during the week but they felt the relief of just being close to each other.

They eventually met back up with Yosuke, the brunette feeling better about the situation after noticing that Teddie was failing to keep the girls entertained. They watched from a distance he tried so hard to be debonair but he didn't seem to fully understand what the girls were really like. In the end the group came back together and spent most of the evening playing a few of the games and each one attempting to get a goldfish, though no-one succeeded

Time slipped by unnoticed and Souji and Kanji soon found themselves standing in the shadows of the shrine, gazing up at the moon through the tree branches by themselves. The sounds of the festival were slowly dying as the hour grew late and the citizens of Inaba crept back to their homes. Souji rested his head against Kanji's shoulder as he watched the moon, the younger boor silently wrapping his arm around his senpai to hold him close.

"I-I love you, Kanji." Souji whispered.

A smile crossed Kanji's face, "I love you too, Senpai." He slipped his other arm around Souji, wrapping the silver haired boy into an embrace. They stood there in silence, looking at each other and studying the other's features in the moonlight. Despite being in public Kanji took the chance and softly pressed his lips against Souji's, cursing anyone who would condemn them.


	8. Chapter 8

Souji walked listlessly towards school, trying to force away the last bit of sleepiness that had decided to tag along for the second term's first day. He hadn't expected to be so tired or to sleep in as late as he did but luckily Nanako had made an easy breakfast and he had made his lunch the night before. There he was, though, sluggishly walking up the hill and lost in his thoughts once more and thinking what the new term would be bringing and what he would be doing with his time now that everything had been settled.

"Mornin'!" a familiar voice cried. Souji turned around and smiled brightly as Chie and Yukiko quickly joined him.

"Hey!" Souji said with a wide smile.

"Good morning," Yukiko said, blushing as she made eye contact with Souji.

Chie let out a sigh, almost hanging her head as she glanced at the school. "Summer vacation's over already."

"Yo, guys!" Yosuke came to a stop next to Souji, panting from a run; the group gave him a confused look. "I got lost on my way here."

Yukiko nodded thoughtfully, "The vacation was pretty long."

A frown passed across Chie's face as she rolled her eyes, "Not that long . . . sheesh." She took the lead, walking towards the gate with the others following in silence. They quickly came to a stop as a familiar face walked towards them.

"Good morning."

"Y-you . . .?" Yosuke stammered. "You're that, uh, pint-size detective!"

"I beg your pardon!? My name is Naoto," the boy snapped. "Please, don't give people bizarre nicknames you make up on the spot."

Yukiko looked around, half expecting to see another detective or a police officer milling about the campus but she saw none. "Um, you know this is a high school, right?"

A slight frown put a shadow over Naoto's face when he heard the question. "My cooperation with the police has come to an end," he explained. "However, there are aspects of the case with which I remain unconvinced. There are some family-related issues as well, so I've decided to stay here for the present." Naoto paused for a moment as the frown returned to a slight smile and he placed a hand in his pocket. "From today forth, I'll be a first-year at your high school. And I felt I should at least introduce myself to you all. I trust our relations will be cordial, Senpai." With a slight bow Naoto turned sharply and walked towards the school, ignoring the stares the female students were giving him.

"S-senpai . . .?" Chie stammered. She glanced at her friends as the confusion on her face deepened. "That detective boy's our underclassman?"

**********

The school day passed without much ado; the group attempted to include Naoto in their afternoon activity but it seemed like the young detective had other things to do. He seemed shocked, though, when Chie extended the invitation and almost a little nervous when he turned them down. In the end all they did was go to their 'secret headquarters' and examine their interaction with the boy, only to come to the conclusion that Naoto was still thinking about the case.

A lull had passed over the group as they sipped their drinks, trying to get the thoughts of the freshly closed case out of their mind. Yosuke snapped his fingers, "Isn't the class trip coming up soon? Where are we going?"

"Tatsumi Port Island," Yukiko grinned. "I heard it's an artificial island that faces the ocean! It's a pretty big city."

"Port Island . . .?" Rise suddenly perked up at the name. "I did tons of shoots there! It's just beyond the Moonlight Bridge, yeah? Should be lots of places to hang out there!"

"Uh actually," Chie laughed nervously, "we may not have any time to goof off during this trip. I heard the school board is changing the trip's schedule this year." The smiles from the group quickly changed to an air of slight annoyance at the idea of a schedule change. Chie bit her lip, wondering if she should continue but knew it would be better then letting everyone find out at the last minute. "The idea is we're going to visit a private school there, like to have local and urban students interact or something. It'll all be about studying and serious business, yuck."

Rise pouted and slumped in her chair, "Ugh, they're totally missing the point of a class trip."

"What kind of place is this private school?" Souji asked.

"I heard it's really good; they have nice buildings and everything," Chie explained with a voice of wonder. "But it's closed on the day we're going there, so they're going the extra mile to make this work. They want us to tour some factories on the second day and then we're coming back on the third day."

"That's no different from a social studies field trip," Yosuke whined. He slumped in his chair, hiding his face behind his hands in protest. "I didn't want to know that."

Kanji shrugged," Can't expect much from a school-sponsored trip, I guess. Well, we'll be around so if it starts to drag we can ditch." He glanced at Souji, the two smiling at each other as both seemed to be thinking the same thing.

"I'll show you guys around!" Rise cheered, clapping her hands together happily.

"But we're in different years," Yosuke stammered.

"Oh, didn't you know?" Yukiko grinned. "The excursion will be like the campout; they're going to combine the first and second years. Since student enrollment is down and they're low on funds, they've cut the excursion back to once every two years."

"Well, at least we won't be bored with you around, Senpai." Kanji said with a bright smile.

"Gosh, I'm trying to remember the last time I went to Port Island and I wasn't working," Rise said with a giggle. "This'll be great!"

"I wish I could be that positive about it," Yosuke glowered. "Doesn't this seem like a pain in the ass to anyone else?"

"Some people were against the proposition but it's been decided." Chie said with a shrug. "Oh, and guess whose idea it was? King Moron's; it's just the kind of thing he'd come up with."

"Nooo, King Moron," Yosuke wailed. "Why must you torture us from beyond the grave?"

"Nooo, King Moron."

Yosuke looked up at the sound of his echoed cry, frowning deeply as Teddie came bounding up to the group. Kanji seemed to read his mind, jabbing at the poor bear, "You don't even know who that is."

Teddie seemed to ignore Kanji and looked at the rest of the group, his eyes wide with wonder. "Hey, tell me more about this trip! Where is Port Island; what's there?"

"Get back to work, will ya?" Yosuke grumbled.

Chie leaned back in her chair, looking thoughtfully up at the cloudless sky. "Even though the class trip is coming up, it's still a ways away. What should I do until then?"

"Well, it's not like we got much to do here in the first place," Kanji piped in. "Man is just an animal trying to figure out how to kill time through his days."

"Huh, you made that sound like you were being philosophical," Chie replied with a grin, "yet it made absolutely no sense."

Kanji lowered his head, "S-sorry."

In an attempt to stop Yukiko's giggle fit before it could fully begin the group decided to wander around Junes to kill the last few hours of the afternoon. Souji took the opportunity to make a list in his head of what he had to bring for on the short trip and if he needed to buy anything, wandering off by himself to do so. It took him a moment to realize that Yukiko was following close behind him, blushing profusely when she noticed she had been caught.

"Is everything all right, Yukiko?" Souji asked with a slight smile.

Yukiko nodded bashfully, "Y-yes, Souji. I was just hoping that you and I could sit together on the way to Port Island. Things have been really hectic this summer so I was just thinking the trip would give us time to catch up!"

"That sounds like a good idea." The smile on Souji's face widened as he saw the joy bloom in Yukiko's eyes. As he continued to meander through Junes Yukiko slowly moved so she walked by his side, her eyes nervously on the floor and randomly stealing glances of her silver-haired classmate. "How is your cooking coming along?"

"Oh, I'm told I'm getting better," Yukiko said with a nervous laugh. "I just think they're being nice, though."

"I'm sure you're getting better. Why don't you make something when we get back from Port Island and I can test it out?" Souji asked, trying his best to bring up the girl's spirit.

"A-are you sure?" Yukiko stammered.

Souji nodded, "Of course; I've always been willing to help you."

Yukiko blushed once more, promising that she would come up with something really great before hurrying off to find Chie. Souji smiled to himself as he continued to wander down the aisles, his thoughts slowly drifting to the possibilities the trip held. It was already evident that there was going to be little time to entertain themselves but it seemed like there wouldn't be any sort of free time to spend with Kanji. He knew they would be resourceful, trying their hardest to team up when they could and hide their affection towards each other when possible.

"You excited about the trip?" The sound of Kanji's voice caused Souji to jump as he was quickly pulled out of his thoughts. Kanji tried hard to hold back his laughter but failed, receiving a glare from the older boy.

"Yes I am," Souji replied after his heart seemed to slow to a normal pace. "What about you?"

Kanji nodded with a big smile. "I've never left Inaba so this is a pretty big thing for me. Rise can't shut up about the place and now I can't wait to get there." His voice trailed off for a moment as he seemed to mull over a thought. "You think I could crash in your room during the trip? I mean, being in the first year tent during that campout was pretty bad and I think it'll be about the same in a hotel room."

Souji smiled at the thought of being able to share a room with Kanji but realized that he would more than likely be sharing that room with Yosuke. "I don't know, Kanji-kun, are you going to be able to handle Yosuke?" he whispered. "And are we going to be able to control ourselves?"

"I-I guess I didn't think about that," Kanji muttered, his smile fading slightly. "It shouldn't be too hard, right Senpai?"


	9. Chapter 9

None of the students seemed to say anything about the hotel when they arrived, everyone a little too embarrassed to mention that Miss Kashiwagi had taken them to a love hotel. Yosuke and Kanji agreed to help Souji drag Teddie into their room, all of them finding him surprisingly heavy as he tried to appear like a stuffed animal. They pushed open the door to their assigned room, pausing when they noticed that there was only one rather large bed for the four of them. They ignored it for the moment, giving one final push against Teddie's furry form and quickly closing the door behind them.

The moment the door latched shut Teddie was quickly climbing out of his bear suit, stretching happily. "So, where are the girls?" he asked with a playful growl.

"In their own room, you stupid bear." Yosuke grumbled. He put his bag on the floor and approached the bed, wincing slightly when he noticed the mirrors on the ceiling. "Only one bed," he mumbled. "Unbelievable."

"There isn't a problem with that!" Teddie said with a childlike grin. He flopped onto the bed, nuzzling one of the velveteen pillows. He stretched out lazily against the sheets, his smile growing the more comfortable he became. "There's enough room here for all of us!"

Kanji blushed at the idea of sharing a bed with the others and quickly turned his attention to his bag in an attempt to hide his face. "H-how do you think the others are taking it?"

"Not much they can do," Yosuke frowned. He rubbed his neck with an exasperated sigh, seeming to give up with their current situation. "I'm gonna look for a vending machine."

Teddie perked up when he heard that, his blue eyes sparkling. "Can I come with?"

"I'm not sure." Yosuke's voice trailed off as he glanced at Souji, looking for some sort of help but the silver haired boy only shrugged in response. "Fine, just don't make a scene." Teddie cheered in reply, bounding after Yosuke as he slipped out of the room.

Souji slowly approached the bed, chewing on his lower lip as he examined the room. "Tonight's gonna be an interesting one."

"Wonder how long before Yosuke-senpai asks if he'll be safe around me?" Kanji frowned. He tossed his bag onto the bed, grumbling to himself as he remembered the incident during the camping trip.

"I can keep you under control," Souji said with a sly smile.

Raising an eyebrow Kanji slowly looked at Souji, "Really?" He knew that the older boy would protest about doing anything in the open, so Kanji took him by the hand and let him into the bathroom. Both boys were surprised at the spacious room, a large bathtub taking up one wall and the other was covered with floor length mirrors.

Souji was quickly pushed against one of the mirrors, Kanji kissing him roughly before anything could be said. He tangled his hands in the younger boy's hair almost enjoying the now familiar tacky feeling of his hair product. Souji pulled Kanji's head back roughly, smiling as the bleach blond let out a grunt in response. He was held like that for a moment, giving Souji the chance to nip at the boy's exposed neck.

"You wanna do things that way, huh?" Kanji laughed. He took hold of Souji's hands and easily pulled them from his hair, forcing his senpai's arms above his head and holding them in place with one hand. Their lips met again in open-mouthed kiss, Kanji slowly unbuttoning Souji's shirt in an attempt to feel the familiar skin.

"What the hell?"

The cry caused the boys to break their kiss, finding Yosuke standing in the door way with a shocked expression. It took a moment for the brunette to realize what he had seen and as his eyes drifted to Kanji he felt his heart sink. Yosuke darted just out of Kanji's grasp, nearly stumbling to the floor as the younger boy rushed out of the bathroom. He could see anger flashing in the bleach blonde's eyes, neither boy daring to move for the moment as they both tried to assess the situation.

Yosuke darted for the door, hoping he could dodge out of the way once more but he quickly felt Kanji's firm grasp on his shirt as he was pulled to the ground violently. He let out a grunt as he hit the floor, wincing as pain throbbed down his back and waiting for another attack that didn't seem to come. "What the fuck is going on?" Yosuke spat, deciding to stay on the floor instead of pressing his luck.

"What do you mean?" Souji asked when he finally emerged from the bathroom. He fidgeted nervously as he looked at his friend, feeling a sense of betrayal from the boy.

"Wh-what do I . . . ?" Yosuke sat up and looked between Kanji and Souji. "What the hell did I just walk in to?"

Kanji walked past Yosuke, startling the brunette as he feigned a kick. He exchanged a worried look with Souji, both boys knowing they could lie to Yosuke about what he had stumbled upon. "Look, Senpai and I have been going out for a while."

Yosuke gave the two a blank look, "What? Are you two serious?"

"I-its true, Yosuke," Souji stuttered.

"And you're okay with it?" Yosuke asked, looking Souji in the eye; the silver haired boy nodded. "I . . . I don't believe this. How the hell can you be gay? You've had girls crawling over each other to be with you and you decide to be with Kanji?"

Souji gave a weak smile, "I didn't really have an interest in anyone before this; I think I've been this way for a long time."

Yosuke slowly climbed to his feet, "I can't sleep in the same bed with two gay guys."

"Ya know what; I'll just go to the room I was assigned to." Kanji snapped. He ignored Souji's attempt to calm his anger, grabbing his bag and storming towards the door. "You better not tell a soul or I swear it'll be the last thing you do," Kanji said, feeling the need to clarify what type of situation Yosuke was putting himself in.

The sound of the door slamming seemed to resonate in Souji's mind as he stared helplessly at his hands. He knew he couldn't have said anything to make the situation better or to calm either of his friends down, but he wish he could have done something. Numbly he wandered to the bed and collapsed onto the sheets, rolling over until he could see his reflection in the mirrored ceiling. Souji could barely make out Yosuke; he was watching him silently from the far side of the bed but he couldn't make out the boy's expression.

"I-I'm sorry, Souji," Yosuke muttered, finally breaking his silence. "I didn't think Kanji would get that upset."

Souji chuckled and draped an arm over his eyes in an attempt to block out the world. "What did you expect?" he sighed. "You've been giving a hard time since day one and now you've found out that it's all true; he's gonna be pissed for a while."

Yosuke nodded seeming to wrestle with a few thoughts before continuing on. "So are you really, um, into guys?"

"Pretty much," Souji laughed, cracking a smile and letting his arm slip away from his eyes. Yosuke's reflection hadn't moved much but he had slowly inched closer to the bed, still obviously timid and uncomfortable in the situation.

"H-how long have you known that?" Yosuke asked as he nervously took a seat on the bed, not sure whether or not he wanted to make eye contact with his friend.

Souji sat up, crossing his legs beneath him and shrugged. "I don't know but I think I've always known on some level."

Yosuke matched Souji's position, fidgeting with the sheets, "What's it like kissing a boy?"

"I d-don't think it's any different than kissing a girl," Souji stammered.

"What was it like?"

Souji could feel himself blush in response to Yosuke's question, not really sure if he should answer it let alone how he could. "W-well," he said with a nervous laugh, "it was the first kiss that ever made my heart nearly stop. It was raining and Kanji forgot his umbrella so we spent the afternoon together before I walked him home." He paused for a moment as he went through that day in his mind, not paying too much attention to Yosuke as he inched closer with his eyes filled with curiosity. "He surprised me; he told me that he thought he liked me and kissed me . . . and I liked it. Kanji's lips were softer than I would've guessed, I suppose but it was the meaning behind it that really made it something else."

Yosuke suddenly leaned forward, crushing Souji's mouth with his own. The silver haired boy froze for a moment before pushing his friend away. "What the hell?" he cried, his eyes wide.

"I-I wanted to see what it was like," Yosuke stammered. His face was red with embarrassment but there was a stern tone in his voice as he stared at Souji. "I've never kissed a girl before and you said it wasn't any different."

Souji could feel his heart racing as he stared at Yosuke, unable to really respond as the boy moved closer for another kiss. "Yosuke," he said, finally finding his voice. "Kanji and I . . . we're an item. I can't do this."

"I'm just curious," Yosuke said, biting his lip.

"It doesn't matter."

**********

Souji was surprised that the music that the club was playing didn't seem to put a damper on the group's time. They had bumped into Naoto the moment they entered the club, surprised that the young detective was in the club but they extended an invitation that he nervously agreed to. Rise had managed to reserve an area of the club and get the group free drinks during their time there. Everyone was more than happy to partake of the free drinks, finally enjoying their school trip and nearly forgetting all of the educational things they had seen.

Kanji shifted nervously in his seat, stealing glances at Naoto that didn't go unnoticed by Souji. He elbowed the bleach blond, causing him to jump slightly and blush as when he noticed he had been caught. "S-sorry," he said, loud enough for only him to hear.

"What's wrong?" Souji asked.

"Its, um, Naoto," Kanji said, leaning back against his seat. He glanced at the young detective once more, muttering to himself before looking at Souji. "I just get nervous around him. Been that way back when he first talked to me and when I, uh, realized I liked guys." There was a sudden pang of jealousy in Souji's heart and he broke eye contact with Kanji. The bleached blond noticed the sudden change in the boy's body language and sighed. "Sorry, Senpai, that kinda came out wrong."

Souji shook his head and forced a smile. "Don't worry about it. We really can't help it when we have those types of feelings."

Kanji suddenly blushed again, "I-I don't have a crush on the guy, if that's what you're hinting at."

"Could've fooled me," Souji muttered. He pushed himself off the cushioned seat, stretching his arms and suddenly realizing the group was watching him. "I need some fresh air; I'll be back." He left without another word, ignoring Kanji's hushed questions on why he was leaving; he needed to clear his head. Souji couldn't really figure out why he was so upset about Kanji stealing glances at Naoto and that he wouldn't admit to even having the slightest crush on the young detective.

The mall was nearly empty of wandering shoppers as most of the stores were closed for the evening, but a small diner and a karaoke club seemed lively. Souji moved towards the fountain in the middle of the mall and gazed at his reflection for a moment. With a sigh he sat at the fountain's edge, dipping his fingers into the water and swirling it around in a desperate attempt to keep his mind occupied.

"Is there anything wrong, Senpai?"

Souji looked up shocked to find Naoto standing before him, a slightly concerned look in his eye. "What makes you think there is something wrong?"

Naoto placed a hand in his pocket, shifting his weight to one foot as he seemed to ponder. "Well it appeared that the conversation you were having with Kanji didn't end well so I only assumed that it caused you some sort of trouble."

The silver haired boy couldn't help but laugh slightly. "I guess I shouldn't be too surprised that you noticed that," Souji smiled. He dried his fingers on his pants and looked Naoto in the eye, weighing his options quickly. "It seems like Kanji-kun has a crush on you."

A slight blush bloomed in Naoto's cheeks but he quickly regained his composure, "I'm flattered, I assure you, but I feel that I should inform you that Kanji has a 'crush' on you as well."

It was Souji's turn to blush, standing quickly and taking a tentative step towards Naoto, "H-how could you tell?"

"Kanji's body language changes and he seems a bit more personable when you're around," Naoto explained. A soft smile crossed his face as he watched Souji's reaction and he lowered his eyes. "It appears that you feel the same."

"Yeah," Souji laughed nervously. "Do you like Kanji?"

Naoto smiled again and shook his head, "I do not entertain such relationships, though it seems that I am adored by many of my classmates."

"A lot of guys would love to be in your shoes," Souji laughed. He slowly began to walk towards Club Escapade and the young detective quickly matched his steps.

"True," Naoto nodded. "I do want to ask you about Chie-senpai, though."

Souji cocked an eyebrow, "What about her?"

"W-what is she like?" Naoto asked, seeming to keep his calm about the subject.

"Well she's pretty energetic and loves kung-fu movies," Souji laughed. "She can be a handful at times but she means well." The door to the club was suddenly thrown open, Kanji emerging with a furrowed brow that quickly changed to look of shock. Souji and Naoto stopped in mid-step, both matching Kanji's shocked expression. "Everything okay, Kanji?" Souji asked.

The frown reappeared on Kanji's face, "Teddie freakin' kissed me thanks to some idiotic game Rise wanted to play."

"I'll leave you two alone," Naoto said, pushing past Kanji.

"What was that about?" Kanji stammered.

Souji shrugged, "Naoto-kun just wanted to make sure I was feeling okay."

Kanji rubbed the back of his neck and looked almost sheepish, "A-are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Souji smiled. He took a step forward and kissed Kanji softly. "We should head back to the group," he whispered, barely pulling away from the younger boy. "I want to see what type of game this is."

* * *

**Note**: Ah, the drama. Didn't want to put this before the story because it had info that would ruin it...and this could contain 'spoilers', so don't read if you haven't gone through the game. XD

I was always of the opinion that, in my mind, Kanji was gay and since Naoto really wanted to grow up to be a man that she could end up questioning her own sexuality. To me it added a new facet to the game(two characters that may like their own gender?!) that I enjoyed and ran with in my head. So, in my story I'm going to touch on that idea but I haven't committed on whether or not Naoto is curious or what. I'll just see how things go! ^-^


	10. Chapter 10

Souji's ear was killing him; before they had left Port Island he debated about getting his ear pierced, finally doing so after Kanji urged him to do it after getting a new piercing himself. He knew Dojima wouldn't care about the piercing, though may make some sort of comment about it. It was his parents he was worried about, the two being more conservative about such things, but he had some time to figure out a way to tell them.

"You didn't have to walk home with me, you know." Souji said, a hand reaching up and fiddling with the stud in his ear.

Kanji frowned slightly and carefully grabbed Souji's hand, "You better stop messing with it; you don't want it to get infected." He shifted the weight of his bag, wondering if he should've stopped by his own place to drop off his luggage but it was too late for that. "I know I didn't have to come with you but I got somethin' for Nanako-chan."

Souji smiled slightly, "Nanako is going to get spoiled at this rate." The two of them had shopped together for Nanako's presents, Kanji settling on a stuffed animal while Souji had bought her a lamp. The only thing he knew was that he was happy to be back in Inaba and he could sleep in his own room.

"Besides," Kanji whispered, "we didn't get to have any time to ourselves." He smiled as a slight blush tinted Souji's cheeks, most likely from his mind going to work. The remained quiet for the rest of the walk to the Dojima residence, save for the few moments when Kanji had to berate Souji for messing with his piercing.

The house was silent when they walked in, both boys surprised to see Nanako napping on the couch with the television still on. Souji didn't have the heart to wake the girl but decided to take the present he bought and place it on the table so she could see it when she woke up. Kanji went a step further, taking the tag off the stuffed fox and placing it in Nanako's arms. The boys exchanged a smile as they silently moved back towards the door.

"Maybe I should head home," Kanji whispered, glancing at Nanako as she shifted in her sleep. "Doubt it would be a good thing if we woke her up. Besides, Ma is probably waitin' for me."

Souji nodded, feeling a little frustrated that they couldn't have more time together, "Yeah, we can always hang out together some other day."

Noticing the disappointment in his senpai's eyes Kanji leaned forward slightly, kissing Souji softly. He quickly returned this kiss, draping his arms over the younger boy's shoulders as the kiss slowly intensified. Souji broke the embrace with a smile and took Kanji by the hand as he motioned for him to be silent. They crept up the stairs, hand in hand, only to stop once they reached the top step to lock themselves in another kiss.

Kanji rested his back against the wall, enjoying the feeling of the older boy's body against his own as Souji took control of the situation. He didn't fully understand why but he took pleasure in the thought of his senpai being the more dominant one at that moment, loving the assertive aura that seemed to come off the boy. Kanji let out a moan as he felt Souji's tongue finally snaked into his mouth and the silent fight for dominance continued, Kanji finally fighting back as he became worked up.

"Oh wow! Big bro, are you home?!" Both boys froze when they heard Nanako's voice and the soft sound of her running towards the stairs. Souji took a deep breath and peeked around the corner, smiling softly when Nanako came into view. She smiled brightly, "Big bro! Thank you for the lamp and the fox!"

"Kanji-kun bought the fox for you," Souji said, his voice cracking as he felt the younger boy's tongue run across his neck.

Nanako's eyes grew wide as she clutched the stuffed animal, "Really?! Can I tell him thank you?"

"I-I think he's in my room, t-taking a nap," Souji stammered. He glared at Kanji as the boy continued to tease him just out of Nanako's sight. It took him a moment to regain his composure, trying his damndest to ignore the boy's wandering hands and the sensation of him biting his neck. "I'll see if I can wake him up and then you can thank him, okay?"

With another bright smile and a cheerful nod Nanako trotted down the stairs. Once she was out of sight Souji turned his attention back to Kanji and gave the younger boy a stern. The bleach blond nodded his head towards Souji's room, a soft smile on his lips as they slipped down the hall hand in hand.

Souji locked the door to his room, not wanting to be interrupted again and fearing what would happen if it was Nanako. He turned to face Kanji but he quickly found himself pushed against the door with the younger's boys lips crushed against his own. Kanji's tongue quickly found its way to Souji's, the silver haired boy moaning into the kiss as their bodies pressed together.

They seemed to be in-sync, breaking their kiss to move away from the door and stripping off their shirts before returning to their embrace. Instead of sitting on the small couch the boys simply slipped to the floor, their legs entwining and their kiss intensifying as the frustration of the past few weeks seemed to be melting away. Souji wriggled free of Kanji's embrace and straddled the bleached blond with a bright smile; he took his time undoing the younger boy's pants. Souji's smile broadening as a moan of ecstasy escaped Kanji as he took hold of him.

Kanji muttered something beneath his breath, his eyes closing as he let himself be swept away by the never ending waves of pleasure. Souji stole a kiss from the younger boy, their tongues wrestling once more before the tables were turned. The silver haired boy let out a soft moan as he felt Kanji's hand wrap around his erection, surprised that, somehow, he hadn't noticed his pants being undone. Both of boys quickly lost themselves in the moment, giving in to their carnal desires.

"Shit," Kanji breathed his head rolling back as he released into Souji's hand. The silver haired boy smiled but was quickly brought over the edge seconds later. He tried not to collapse on Kanji, his arms shaking as he kept himself propped up. A smile crossed the bleached blonde's flushed face, "We should probably get cleaned up."

"Y-yeah," Souji panted. He leaned down to kiss the younger boy but stopped when a sharp knock came from his door. "Kanji-kun isn't awake yet, Nanako; I think he was a bit more tired than I thought."

"I'll let Nanako know but I was just going to ask if Tatsumi was going to stay over for dinner." Dojima replied with a slight laugh.

Souji looked down at Kanji for some sort of response but the younger boy seemed to be struck with fear. "He'll probably stay for food."

"It's nothin' fancy," Dojima replied, "just some store bought meals. You wake him up before it gets cold."

Neither boy moved until they were sure Dojima had left the door, both of them hurrying to clean themselves and straighten their clothes. Before they left the room Kanji grabbed Souji by the arm and pulled him close, kissing him deeply. They smiled at each other, trying not to hold hands as they headed down stairs.

"Big bro," Nanako cried happily. She hurried across the room, wrapping her arms around Souji as best as she could. When she finally released Souji from her embrace she peeked at Kanji, quickly growing bashful as the boy smiled at her. "Thank you for stuffed animal, Kanji-sama."

Kanji laughed nervously, "You're welcome, Nanako-chan, and you can just call me Kanji; none of that 'sama' stuff."

A bright smile flashed across Nanako's face, "Okay!" She quickly took hold of Kanji's hand and then Souji's, leading both of the boys to the table where their dinner waited. "Daddy called and was nice enough to get food for all of us so Kanji didn't have to go home early."

"Th-thank you for inviting me, Dojima-san," Kanji stammered as he finally caught sight of the detective. It was inevitable for his mind to jump back to the moment when the detective had accidently walked in on them, but he wished he hadn't as his nerves seemed to be on end.

Dojima shook his head and motioned for all of them to sit, "Don't mention it; the more the merrier, I suppose."

Nanako suddenly let out a gasp, her eyes wide as she stared up at Souji. "Your neck is all red, Big Bro." she said, squinting slightly. "It looks like something bit you."

Souji's face turned red, a hand flying to his neck to hide the irritated skin. He shot Kanji an angry look and noticed Dojima giving both of them a suspicious glance. "I'll be fine, Nanako." Souji said once he finally calmed himself. "If it bothers me later I can put something on it."

"So, the first year students went along?" Dojima asked, clearing his voice. Both boys nodded, turning their focus onto the food before them in an attempt to distract themselves. "Naoto Shirogane must've been there too. You talk to him much?"

"Yeah," Souji nodded. "I had a chance to talk with him one night."

"He's mature for his age, but he's still a year younger than you," Dojima sighed. "Try to make friends with him, will you? He's a cocky brat, but he's honest. The higher-ups are losing their patience with him. It doesn't matter if his arguments hold water or not. At this rate he won't accomplish anything but getting himself booted off the team." His voice trailed off as he seemed to lose himself in his thoughts.

Souji and Kanji exchanged worried looks but said nothing, the dinner commencing in an odd silence. Part way through their meal, though, Nanako took it upon herself to lighten the mood by asking them what their trip was like. Both boys seemed to be on the same train of thought as they told Nanako the next time they went they'd take her along too. Dojima seemed hesitant to agree with the idea of a trip to Port Island but caved in at the first sign of a pout from his daughter.

In an attempt to thank the detective for the meal Kanji decided he would help clean. Nanako took the opportunity to sit closer to Souji, hugging and thanking him again for the lamp. She paused as she looked at him, suddenly turning to her dad with wide eyes. "Can I get my ears pierced?"

"Wh-why do you want your ears pierced?" Dojima asked, nearly spitting out his drink.

"Big bro got his ear pierced," Nanako explained, "and Kanji has a lot, too."

"I think Tatsumi has enough piercing for the both of you," Dojima muttered. He eyed Souji, finally noticing the small silver stud in his ear. "Did you just get that?"

Souji nodded and gave a nervous laugh, "I got it in Port Island."

Dojima frowned slightly and looked at Kanji who was watching them in silence, "I guess I should thank you for all of this?"

"He didn't have to get his ear pierced and no-one notices if I get a new one," Kanji replied with a smile. "If you agree to it, I can take Nanako-chan to get her ears pierced."

"Please?" Nanako asked, bouncing in front of her father with wide eyes.

Dojima hung his head with a sigh, "I don't think I can say no at this point." Nanako let out a cry of joy in response.


	11. Chapter 11

As usual they decided to meet up to talk about the previous night, everyone amazed that another person had shown up on the Midnight Channel. Souji had his assumptions about the next victim, guessing that it had to be Naoto from the silhouette he had seen but so far it didn't seem like anyone had seen much to discern the person. They crowded around his desk in a tight group in an attempt to keep their discussion to themselves, but it only seemed to draw more suspicious looks from the other students.

"So . . . about the Midnight Channel last night," Chie said, strumming her fingers on her desk.

Yukiko lowered her eyes as a solemn expression crossed her face, "I wonder who that was."

"I talked to Teddie and he says no one's entered the other side." Yosuke crossed his arms over his chest, glowering as he went through his thoughts on the subject.

"Well, yeah," Rise rolled her eyes. "The killer's been caught.

Yosuke shrugged, "Yeah." His voice trailed off before he continued, turning his attention to Kanji. The others followed his gaze, noticing that the bleached blond seemed to be lost in his own thoughts. Yosuke cleared his throat, causing him to look up with a slightly startled expression.

"Huh . . . ?" Kanji stammered. "What's up?"

"C'mon, get with the program," Yosuke frowned with a shake of his head. "You saw the TV last night, right?"

Kanji furrowed his brow and shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "So? 's got nothing to do with us. The killer's behind bars, man. You guys are just over reacting." He paused for a moment, running a hand through his styled hair. "That shit Naoto said didn't make any sense either, so there's no use getting all worked up about it."

"Huh? Naoto-kun . . . ?" Yukiko asked.

"Uh, no, well . . ." Kanji began to stammer again, his cheeks growing rosy with embarrassment. "H-how do I put it . . . ?"

A slight smile danced across Yosuke's face, "What, were you out of it 'cause you were still thinking about what Naoto said?" He laughed softly and his smile grew wider as Kanji's expression began to sour. "So you're still hung up on all that stuff?"

"That's-! I ain't hung up on it!" Kanji growled.

Yosuke shook his head, the smile still on his face. "It's okay," he shrugged, "we all understand. Just don't go overboard, man."

"You little . . . I said it's not like that," Kanji snarled, making a move towards the brunette. Both Rise and Souji moved in-between the boys in an attempt to stop the fight before it happened. Kanji didn't make any further attempts to get closer to Yosuke, glancing at Souji before he frowned again. "I got stuff to do; I'm outta here." He pushed past the group angrily, avoiding eye contact with them as he left.

Souji whipped around, glaring at the still grinning brunette. "Stop bringing that up, Yosuke," he snapped. "You know he doesn't think it's funny."

"Ooh, what? What?" Rise asked with a smile. She looked from student to student, her eyes twinkling slightly. "Did something happen between Kanji and Naoto-kun?"

Yukiko laughed nervously, "W-well, that aside is it me or does the town seem kind of strange lately? Everyone is in high spirits for some reason . . . And they all talk about other people, but never themselves."

"Really? I don't think it's anything special." Chie said with a shrug. "Now that the murder case is solved people feel more relaxed, that's all."

"That's how society is; they all just want to get in on the latest trend." Rise piped in. "People get excited fast and lose interest even faster. It goes 'round and 'round. There's no underlying reason for it."

"I don't know," Yukiko said softly. "It still seems a little too weird. It's like, they're all afraid of something." The others gave her a confused look, causing her to give a nervous chuckle. "Oh, sorry; I just had this feeling."

Yosuke glanced at his watch and then at the window, his mood darkening slightly. "It's gonna rain again tonight," he murmured.

"We should check out the Midnight Channel just in case." Chie pushed her chair back and stood, stretching with a pleased sigh. Glancing at Yukiko and then at Rise she motioned for them to leave, obviously having planned some afternoon activity. They said their good-byes, hurrying away as they whispered to each other.

Yosuke grabbed his bag and strolled out of the room. Souji frowned and retrieved his own things, racing into the nearly empty hall. "You're being such a bastard, you know that Yosuke?" Souji yelled down the hall.

The brunette stopped in mid-step, turning around with a shocked look. "What the hell are you talking about?"

Souji stormed up to the boy, pushing him against the wall as he grabbed him by the collar. "You know what I'm talking about," he snapped. "Why the hell are you still saying this crap about Kanji?"

"Hey, it's not my fault that he has a thing for Naoto-kun," Yosuke stammered, squirming in his teammate's grasp.

"I just want you to quit messing with him, okay?" Souji replied, releasing Yosuke from his grasp. The brunette still seemed shocked by the whole experience, preferring not to move. "Besides, I don't have to worry about Kanji's crush on Naoto-kun; he doesn't seem to like guys."

Yosuke shrugged, "Still seems like Kanji gets hung about him. If I had a girlfriend doing the same thing I'd be upset or at least jealous."

"I'll see you later," Souji muttered.

**********

Souji couldn't stop thinking about what Yosuke had said; he wasn't upset by the whole thing but he had to admit that he was jealous of Kanji's slight obsession with Naoto. He thought knowing that the young detective was more interested in Chie would ease it but Kanji's thought still seemed occupied with him from time to time. To ease his nerves Souji decided to wander through the shopping district, picking up a new book to start whenever he could find the time to read. He decided against eating at Aiya, instead heading towards Tatsumi Textiles in hopes that Kanji was there and in the mood to talk.

The store was closed; there wasn't a sign saying that the owner was away but the entire building seemed to be locked tight. Souji bit his lip, gripping the handle of his umbrella for courage as he knocked on the door. He strained his hearing in an attempt to notice any sort of movement from inside but there was nothing. "Please be home," Souji whispered as he knocked louder on the door.

A moment of silence passed before Souji heard something from beyond the door. "Damnit, can't you take a hint? Store's closed."

Souji sighed heavily, "I don't care. Just let me in."

The door slid open after a few moment of silence and Souji knew he had to be blushing; Kanji stood before him with a towel draped over his bare shoulders, wearing only a pair of tattered jeans. The bleached blond looked at him without much of an expression, taking the towel and running it over his damp hair.

"What do ya want?" Kanji mumbled.

"I guess I wanted to make sure you were okay." Souji replied, a little less than happy with the boy's attitude.

Kanji shrugged, "I'm fine." He turned and disappeared into the house, leaving the door open as his way of telling the older boy to enter. Souji followed him through the house, quickly taking off his shoes and leaving his things at the door to catch up with him. They ended up in the kitchen with a tense silence between them and Souji trying his hardest not to stare at the younger boy.

"It doesn't seem like you're 'fine.'" Souji said once he regained his voice.

"Look," Kanji sighed, "I just needed to get away from Yosuke-senpai before I hit 'em. Ma is out of town right now so I came here to vent." He opened the refrigerator and tossed Souji a drink, deciding to keep the alcohol to himself instead of sharing it a with a detective's nephew. "So, what else did you want?"

Souji nodded and took a swig of the drink he had been handed, deciding that he didn't much like the taste of the energy drink. "Well, I-I wanted to talk to you about Naoto."

"What about him?" Kanji muttered.

"I guess I just wanted to know if I had to be worried," Souji replied. The bleached blond looked at him with a mixture of confusion and worry, turning his eyes to his drink as he went through his thoughts. "You get nervous around him and you try to avoid him, but I think we both know that you have a crush on him."

Kanji nodded his head slightly, "I guess you're right."

Souji put the energy drink down and crossed over to Kanji, kissing him softly on the cheek. "I . . . I think we should take a break," he whispered. He could feel a lump forming in his throat as Kanji looked at him with wide, pained eyes. Souji looked away, not really believing that he was doing this but knowing that he had to.

"Why?" Kanji's asked, his voice cracking slightly. He wrapped his arms around Souji and held him close; he tried to fight back the tears that were starting to form but to no avail. "Why would that be better?"

"I think one distraction is enough," Souji replied, returning the embrace. "When you get things figured out let me know." He kissed Kanji, his heart aching as he felt the younger boy's body convulse as he tried to hold back a sob. Souji pulled away quickly and hurried out of the house, trying no to hear Kanji's sobs. He didn't bother to use his umbrella on the way home, opting to let the rain hide his his tears.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Oh the drama. T^T I swear that things get better, so don't expect anything too emo.


	12. Chapter 12

Souji had ignored his phone after the Midnight Channel had shown him what he already knew; Naoto was the next victim. The group went to work trying to find out as much information about the young detective over the next two days, trying not to look too suspicious. Souji was happy that he and Kanji could work together despite what had happened the night before, but he could see the pain in the younger boy's eyes and he knew that his eyes held the same. He still felt that twinge of jealousy at Kanji's outbursts towards finding their lost classmate but he hid those feelings beneath a well trained look of apathy.

The group prepared themselves in the same manner as their last battle against Mitsuo, even going as far to use the same tactics. Naoto's area looked reminiscent of old tokusatu and kaiju shows, causing the group to stop momentarily to bask in their childhood memories. They weathered the storm of monsters in the 'secret base,' finding it easier this time around using their tactics. This time, though, there was a new sense of urgency in the group; this time the person kidnapped was a friend.

Time was absent and no one knew how long they had been wandering by the time they reached the final door. Souji leaned against the wall as he tried to catch his breath, the others doing in varying standing or sitting positions. He glanced at Kanji; he sat near the door, his legs bent and his head resting on his knees. Souji closed his eyes and took in a deep breath; all he could do was wish that everything would be over with and that things could get back to normal.

"Are you guys able to keep going?" Everyone glanced up at the sound of Rise's voice, nodding slightly despite their exhausted bodies. The former idol nodded and gripped her back pack tightly, "Than lets go."

Scrambling to their feet the group charged through the door. They froze almost as soon as they entered the room, catching sight of a surgery table with drills and saw blades positioned amongst the lights. Naoto stood with his shadow; his double wore an oversized lab coat and seemed to be sobbing into its hands.

"Naoto," Kanji cried.

The young detective looked over his shoulder, not seeming surprised in the slightest. "Ah, it's about time you arrived. Dealing with this child has been quite a pain." He glanced once more at his sobbing double before strolling towards the group.

"No!" the shadow cried, lunging forwards and taking hold of Naoto's arms. "No, no, don't go!

"It's useless speaking with you. I need to go back now," Naoto replied, pulling his arm free in one motion.

The shadow crumpled to the floor, tears streaming from its eyes once more. "Why? Why're you leaving me here? Why am I always left alone? I-it's so lonely . . . I don't wanna be alone."

"Naoto-kun," Yukiko murmured.

"You wear the same face as me," Naoto said, shaking his head. "It's as if you're implying we're one and the same. But the difference between me and you is . . ."

"Why delude yourself?" the shadow ask, the tears seeming to disappear instantly. "I am you. These childish gestures are no mere affectation, they're the truth." It slowly walked forwards, its yellow eyes locked onto Naoto. "The fools all say that, don't they? 'You're only a child,' 'Keep out of our business, kid,' and so forth. No matter how many cases you spend hours cogitating over, no matter how many crimes you solve, you're a child in their eyes."

The shadow stopped only inches away from the young detective, smiling slightly as it admired Naoto. "It's your brain they're interested in, the grey matter locked up in that skull. As long as they need it you're an ace detective! But once you're done its back to the playpen with you. You haven't the means to deal with society's two-faced nature." The smile on the shadow's face broadened, "You're just a lonely child."

"Naoto," Yosuke said with a sad looked in his eye.

"I wanna be a grown-up," the shadow sobbed. "I wanna be a big boy right now, then they'll see who I am. I-I want a reason for me to stay."

"That's enough," Naoto roared, seizing the shadow by the collar of its jacket. "I can find my own reason for living."

The shadow laughed, "I'm telling you that's impossible. You are but a child. How can you change that essential truth?"

"S-stop it," Naoto cried, his grip loosening.

"At your core you admire the sort of 'strong' and 'cool' men who populate detective fiction," the shadow grinned, wrenching itself out of Naoto's hands. "But in trying to emulate them you must know that, in truth, you're nothing of the sort; you're a child. There's no avoiding first principles, admit that you're a child and admit that there's nothing you can do about it."

Silence filled the room as the shadow waited for some sort of response from Naoto. It laughed to itself when the response didn't come, turning to the machine behind it with a laugh. "Now then, our analysis is complete! Let us begin the body alteration procedure!" The shadow glanced over its shoulder, "You have no objections, do you . . . 'Naoto' Shirogane?"

"Stop it," Naoto cried.

"'Naoto' . . . Such a cool, manly name!" the shadow cooed. "But a name doesn't change the truth. It doesn't let you cross the barrier between the sexes. How could you become the ideal man when you were never male to begin with?"

"Wait, what?" Yosuke cried. He glanced at the others, noticing the same looks of confusion on their faces. "Did . . . Did I hear that right?"

"H-he's not a guy?" Kanji stammered.

"I won't throw a tantrum," Naoto said through clenched teeth. "That accomplishes nothing!"

The shadow threw back its head in laughter, "How often I've heard those words from adults. 'Throwing tantrums won't solve anything, Naoto-kun,' and other such bilge." Cocking its head the shadow took a tentative step towards Naoto. "They made you cry, didn't they? Yet here you are, mimicking those same men. What exactly are you trying to justify?"

"What?" Naoto stammered.

"It's all right; you needn't suffer anymore," the shadow said calmly, taking Naoto's hand. "That's why you're undergoing this body alteration procedure to begin with. You throw a tantrum, it fails to change the situation a single bit . . . I can quite understand the feeling. After all, I am you."

Naoto pulled away from the imposter, "That's not true!"

"Don't say it." Chie shouted.

Kanji shook his head and glanced at the group. "It's okay . . . Let the kid spill the whole thing. If not, Naoto's just gonna keep hurting. We'll just do our job and kick the shadow's ass, yeah?"

The shadow chuckled, "As if you know anything about me! You'll kick my ass, huh? Fine, go ahead and try, you lizard brained imbecile." Like the other times a thick fog encased the shadow and spilled across the room, hiding the transformation from prying eyes. The group prepared themselves, maneuvering through the fog to take up the positions they had agreed upon. In an instant the fog dissipated, revealing a mechanized form of Naoto hovering above them. "I am a shadow, the true self. What, are you sick of yourselves too?" it asked in a mechanical voice. It raised a pair of laser guns, seeming to laugh to itself as it pointed the weapons at the group. "Very well, let's begin the special operation!"

Souji raised his hand and summoned Ose, having the creature cast a spell in an attempt lower the shadow's agility. Yukiko and Yosuke took that as their cue and cast the strongest spell they had against, slamming the forces of wind and fire into the shadow's mechanized body. The shadow retaliated quickly, barreling towards Yukiko and throwing her against the floor.

Rise let out a cry, fishing through her bag until she found what she needed, "Yukiko-senpai, here." Fearing the battle she threw the medicine towards the raven haired girl, cheering as the girl seemed to pluck it out of the air. Not wanting to feel left out in aiding his companions Teddie cast his own spell in hopes of increasing his companions' strength.

"Let's do this, Chie-senpai." Kanji grinned. The two summoned their personas, sending the massive forms towards the shadow with weapons drawn. The weapons collided with their target the same instant Yosuke and Yukiko cast their second volley of spells. Souji took the opportunity to summon a different persona, having Barong call down a bolt of lightning that smashed into the shadow's arm.

"So troublesome," the shadow muttered as it called forth a wall of ice around Yukiko, causing her to drop to the ground once more.

"No!" Chie cried, suddenly charging towards the shadow. She leapt into the air, bringing her leg down on the shadow's head and knocking it to the ground. Chie whipped around, a proud smile on her face, "This is our chance!" Souji nodded and the team converged on the monster, giving Rise the opportunity she needed to heal Yukiko once more.

"I can't tell if we're doing anything to it," Yosuke spat as the shadow broke free from their attack.

The shadow hovered above the group, scuffs covering its body from the previous attack. "Why won't you lie down and die? You children can't do anything at all," the monster snapped. It pointed its hand at Yukiko once more, summoning the wall of ice around the girl. She cringed in anticipation but soon found herself being pushed out of the way by Chie, who managed to weather the blow. With another cry of anger the shadow raised one of its guns and fired a laser at the tomboy, causing the girl to crumple to the ground with a look of surprise.

Souji glanced at Rise, "What happened to her?"

"She can't summon her persona," Rise explained. Teddie took the initiative and pilfered through their bag until he found the proper item and rushed towards the fallen girl.

"We can't give up," Yosuke shouted as he attacked once more. Kanji and Yukiko nodded, both calling their elements and slamming them into the shadow. "I think if we hit it like that a few more times, we'll finish it off!"

Understanding what had been said the shadow turned its attack to Yosuke, barreling into the boy yet he managed to keep his footing. Souji reached into his pocket and pulled out the medicine he had tucked away, handing it to the wounded boy. There was no time for a thank you as Kanji and Chie attacked the shadow with the weapons, nearly knocking it to the ground as Yukiko engulfed it in flames.

"No," the shadow growled, trying to keep itself from slumping to the ground. It placed a hand over its chest, casting a spell on itself before casting a massive wall of ice before the group. Their cries filled the air, Yukiko once more being brought to the ground with Rise while the others somehow managed to stand their ground.

"Ganga," Souji cried. The serpentine woman appeared, raising its head with a grin as it cast a healing light over the group. "We almost got it."

Yukiko staggered to her feet and quickly cast another spell; Kanji, Yosuke, and Teddie did the same, calling forth their own elements and slamming it into the shadow's metallic form. The creature still stood, its eyes glowing as it stared at the group. It made no attempt to defend itself as Chie rushed it once more, bringing down a barrage of kicks onto its already beaten body. The shadow let out a strangled cry as it fell to the ground, its limbs twitching slightly as the electricity still ran through its mechanized body.

The group turned its attention to Naoto, rushing over to her as she lay unconscious on the ground. Chie bit her lip, "So . . . Naoto-kun was a girl." She glanced at the group, the blush in her cheeks easy hidden beneath the flush of battle. Naoto let out a groan, her eyes fluttering open as she struggled to sit.

"You're awake!" Yukiko cried.

Naoto slowly climbed to her feet, her eyes scanning the room. "Where am I? I-I remember all of you arriving and . . ." Her eyes dropped as the memory of what had transpired came back to her. "That's right . . . you saw everything." Naoto looked up, her eyes locking onto those of her shadow as it returned to its 'human' form. She approached it cautiously, "I lost both my parents in an accident. I was still young so my grandfather took me in. I was inept at making friends so I spent my times reading detective novels in my grandfather's study."

"What I grow up," the shadow mused, "I'm gonna be an awesome, hard-boiled detective!"

"My parents were proud of their job," Naoto continued, lowering her eyes. "I had no qualms about following in their footsteps. An inherited occupation can feel stifling to many but I welcomed it. I yearned for the day that I could be a detective myself. Perhaps I inherited that desire from them as well.

"I was always alone. Seeing that my grandfather must have believed it was his duty to help me realize my dream. I secretly aided my grandfather with his clients and before I knew it people started calling me 'Junior Detective.' At first I was delighted but not everything went so smoothly."

"What was that you said about 'You're only a child,'?" Souji asked.

Naoto smiled weakly, glancing up at Yukiko. "Not everyone welcomes my collaboration when it comes to solving cases. My status as a 'child' was sufficient to offend many of those whom I worked with. Were that the only issue then it would have resolved itself with time." Her voice trailed off for a moment as she slipped into thought. With a sigh she raised her eyes and regained her composure. "But though I will one day change from a child to an adult, I will never change from a woman to a man."

"Do you not like being a girl?" Yukiko asked. "Is that why you always dress like a boy?"

"My sex doesn't fit my ideal image of a detective," Naoto explained, turning towards Yukiko. "Besides, the police department is a male-oriented society. If they have the slightest 'concrete' reason to look down on me no one would need me anymore."

"You don't know that," Kanji said, breaking his silence.

Souji nodded, "You must know already that what you yearn for isn't to become an adult or become a boy."

Naoto nodded with a soft smile, "You're absolutely right." She turned to her shadow, the smile still on her face. "I'm sorry . . . I kept ignoring you, pretending you didn't exist. But you are me, and I am you. Y-you've always been inside me. What I should yearn for, no, what I must strive for isn't to become a man. It's to accept myself for who I really am."

The shadow seemed to smile as it slowly faded. Naoto returned the smile but it faded as she fell to her knees. "In any event," she chuckled, "you're a devious bunch. I can't believe you kept something like this hidden for so long. No wonder the perpetrator eluded the police. But it's apparent now, this case is far from over."

**********

Yukiko agreed to take Naoto home once they had returned to Junes, leaving the others to their own devices after their victory. Chie managed to talk the group into having a victory drink in the food court, the six of them traveling upstairs in a noisy group. They found their usual spot free and decided that it was late enough in the afternoon that the sun wouldn't bother them. A toast was given to their group for finding Naoto and another toast was given to Naoto for being able to come to terms with her other self.

"It's surprising to find out that Naoto-kun is girl," Chie said in-between sips of her drink as she blushed slightly. "I-I never would have guessed."

"I'm surprised myself!" Teddie piped in. "I can usually tell who's a girl but Naoto-kun must be bear-y good with disguises."

Yosuke rolled his eyes, suddenly elbowing Kanji with a grin. "Guess you had nothing to be worried about. Must be a relief to know Naoto-kun is a girl, huh?"

"Shut up," Kanji growled.

"I knew it!" Rise giggled, clapping her hands together. "You do have a crush on Naoto-kun!" She suddenly latched onto Souji's arm, nearly causing the silver haired boy to spill his drink. Rise smiled at him, batting her eyes, "That means I get to have you, Senpai!"

Kanji suddenly slammed his drink onto the table, causing the group to jump. He locked eyes with Souji for a moment before looking away with a frown. "I'll see you guys later." Kanji grabbed his drink and left without another word.

"What the hell was that about?" Yosuke muttered, giving Souji a questioning glance. The silver haired boy excused himself from the table and Yosuke quickly followed. "Dude, what's going on? First Kanji's actin' weird and now you're being anti-social."

"Guess that's because Kanji and I aren't together at the moment," Souji said in a hushed voice. The look on Yosuke's face urged him to continue, the boy rolling his eyes and motioning for him to follow. The two took a seat a table, making sure to be out of view of the others. "When you pissed him off the other day I wanted to make sure everything was okay. Well, I got to thinking and decided that it might be better if we weren't an item; he has enough to worry about with Naoto, I don't need to be in that mess."

Yosuke raised an eyebrow, "With Naoto being a girl and all, does that mean Kanji isn't gay?"

Souji groaned, "I don't know but if he likes girls he has to be bisexual."

"What?" Yosuke asked.

"If Kanji likes Naoto then he has to be bisexual because he and I . . ." Souji's voice trailed off as he realized that he was getting onto a subject he probably shouldn't be on. He blushed profusely as he noticed the slight rosy tint in Yosuke's face. "I think I probably said more than I needed to."

Yosuke gave a nervous laugh, "Don't worry about. I mean you guys were together for a while so I shouldn't be too surprised if you, um, did things." They sat in an uncomfortable silence for a moment, neither one looking at the other. "Are you two going to be okay?"

Souji shrugged and hung his head, hoping that what he was feeling wasn't a wave of tears; he didn't need to cry in front of Yosuke. "I hope so."


	13. Chapter 13

Note: Oh the fluffiness. w Somewhat short chapter because I'm itching to get to the Culture Festival. :D Oh what fun will there be?!

* * *

It seemed like they were avoiding each other, spending time with each other only when it was in a group. Kanji seemed to grow more and more agitated as the days went by, while Souji slowly seemed to grow more detached. Souji occupied his afternoons with the drama club or the soccer team, eventually deciding to spend time with Yukiko. She seemed to slip back into her old trends when she was around the silver haired student, and he noticed it, finally realizing that she still had a crush on him. Souji was at a loss for words but decided to play dumb, trying his best to ignore it all.

Nearly two weeks passed like that as the group waited for Naoto to recover and decide to indulge them with her story. It was a particularly sunny day but Souji found himself wandering through the shopping district by himself; Yukiko had to work and he wasn't too interested in spending time in the drama room. He spent an hour wandering through the bookstore, eyeing the newest selection of manga but ended up not purchase anything. Glancing at his watch he figured that he had spent enough time wandering aimlessly and that slowly shuffled out of the store.

"H-hey, Senpai?"

Souji's heart nearly stopped when he heard Kanji's voice from behind him, turning around quickly with a flushed face. "K-kanji, hi," he stammered, mentally kicking himself for sounding so flustered. "How are you doing?"

Kanji shrugged, turning his attention to the ground for a moment as he shoved his hands into his pockets. "I'm doin' pretty good, I suppose. What about you?"

"I'm okay," Souji replied. They stood in an awkward silence, the sound of the busy street unable to hide that fact. The silver haired boy sighed, readjusting his bag and deciding that things didn't seem to be going anywhere. "I think I should be heading home. I'll talk to you later, Kanji."

Souji turned to walk away but was stopped as Kanji grabbed him by the arm. He turned and looked at the younger boy, his heart racing as he yelled at Kanji in his mind to say or do something. Souji didn't move though, welcoming the familiar touch despite wanting to pull free and keep walking. He could tell that Kanji was going through similar thoughts and emotions as he felt the boy's hand tighten around his arm in an attempt to gather his courage.

"I . . . I was wondering if you wanted to come over for dinner," Kanji said with a pained sigh. It wasn't what he was hoping for but Souji agreed to the dinner invitation, smiling as he noticed joy filter through Kanji's eyes. The two walked in silence and it seemed like neither one knew what to say, let alone how to broach the subject of their relationship.

The smell of rice, steaming vegetables, and chicken greeted the boys as they slipped into the Tatsumi residence. "I need to give Nanako a call," Souji said as he slipped off his shoes; Kanji nodded and disappeared towards the kitchen. He fished his phone from his pocket and quickly dialed, "Nanako? I'm not going to be home for dinner. Kanji-kun invited me to his house, so tell your dad I'll be home later, okay?"

Kanji returned as the conversation ended, "Food isn't done yet and Ma doesn't want us to hang around in the kitchen; might as well hang out in my room." He led the way, trying to figure out what the two could do while they waited for their meal. Kanji was nervous about the time alone with Souji, still kicking himself for not saying what he had meant to when they first ran into each other.

"Oh wow!" Souji's voice broke through Kanji's thoughts and he suddenly found himself flushed with embarrassment. The older boy was holding an unfinished scarf in his hands, admiring the construction with wonder. "I didn't know you made scarves."

"Yeah, I do a lot of that type of stuff," Kanji said. He took the scarf from his senpai and put the materials away in their respective drawers. He grabbed one of his knitted stuffed animals and handed it to Souji. "I made this too."

Souji smiled, "You're pretty good. I never would've guessed that you did this type of thing."

"'s something I really don't talk about," Kanji shrugged. He sat at the small table in his room, cradling his head in his hands. '_Damnit_,' he thought. '_Why can't I just get it out? What the hell's wrong with me? It wasn't this hard to tell Senpai I liked him in the first place._'

"Are you feeling okay, Kanji?"

Kanji jumped as he felt Souji's hand come to rest on his shoulder. He looked up into his senpai's eyes, his heart fluttering for a moment. Kanji took the boy's hand and in one simple move pulled him down to his level, kissing him full on the lips. Souji returned the kiss without hesitating, welcoming the familiar taste and the feeling of Kanji's hands as they tangled themselves in his hair.

They broke their kiss, their eyes locking together and a faint smile danced across Souji's lips. "I hope this is your way of saying you've figured things out," he whispered.

"I couldn't pick anyone over you," Kanji replied kissing Souji once more. "Whatever I felt for Naoto couldn't amount to what I feel for you. B-besides, I don't think I could be with a girl." A slight blush accented Kanji's face as he said that last sentence, still seeming a little bashful of saying such a thing. Their lips met again as they laid down on the floor, their leg entwining as they continued their heated embrace. They only stopped when they heard a soft knock at the door.

"Dinner is done," Mrs. Tatsumi said cheerfully, "so you and your friend should come and eat, Kanji."

"We'll be right there, Ma." Kanji grumbled. He tightened his arms around Souji as he felt the older boy try and move. Their eyes met and Kanji smiled slightly, "Let me hold you for a little longer, Senpai. I . . . I was afraid I'd never get to do this again."

Souji smiled and nuzzled against Kanji's neck, "I was too."

**********

During dinner Souji had the notion that Kanji's mother knew more than she was letting on, asking questions in such a roundabout way that it seemed like normal curiosity about her son's friend. He was more than happy to answer the questions, feeling that it was useless to hide things but still too early to come out and tell her about the relationship. Souji had the feeling that Kanji was picking up on his mother's curiosity and quickly finished his meal in an attempt to hurry things along. He offered to walk the silver haired boy home, an invitation that was hastily accepted.

It was still early in the evening when the boys left the Tatsumi residence and instead of escorting Souji home Kanji suggested they spend some time at the riverbed. They tempted fate, walking hand in hand down the empty streets and staying as close to the other as they could. Things seemed to be falling back into place since Kanji had made his decision, almost as if their separation had never happened.

The road to the riverbed was empty, even the old man that spent most of the early evening fishing wasn't in his usual spot. Souji led the younger boy to the tree, sitting in its shadow so they could view the stream and be out of sight of anyone passing by. Kanji sat with his back to the tree's trunk and draped his arms over Souji's shoulder as the older boy sat so his back was resting against his stomach.

"S-senpai, what's gonna happen to us when spring comes around?" Kanji's voice was soft as he whispered into Souji's ear, his breath tickling his neck ever so slightly. Souji hadn't thought much about what he would do after he left. When he arrived in Inaba he hadn't really considered the possible friendships he would build and even the possibility of an intimate relationship, yet there he was.

Souji let his head fall back against Kanji's chest and stared out at the moving water; this wasn't something he wanted to think about but he couldn't just forget about it. "I don't know, Kanji," he said softly. "But I think we could make it work."

"Yeah," Kanji whispered. "Just remember, though, that no matter what I'll always be here for you."

Souji moved so he could look Kanji in the eye, "What do you mean by that?"

Kanji shrugged, seeming a little embarrassed about his previous comment. "It's just that people say long distance relationships don't work. I want you to know that even if we can't make it work you'll always be in my heart."

"Despite how sad that sounds," Souji said, wrapping his arms around Kanji, "it was rather sweet. You'll have a special place in my heart too, Kanji." Souji raised his head to Kanji's, kissing the younger boy deeply. He had a strange feeling that things had changed between the two of them and they couldn't turn back.

They sat beneath the tree and watched as the moon appeared from behind the covering of clouds. Both were grateful that they had the chance to embrace each other in public but the fear of their companion's approval still weighed on them. Chie seemed less then surprised when she had found out and Yosuke was rather shocked and appalled, but both boys knew that was inevitable. Souji had yet to tell Kanji that Naoto knew of their feelings, though whether or not the young detective knew about the relationship was something else all together. Neither of them knew how to approach their friends or even if they should.

"Hey Kanji?" Souji whispered.

"Hm?"

"I think your mother knows about us," Souji said with a slight smile.

Kanji shifted nervously but let out a laugh. "So I guess I wasn't imaginin' that. The old bat seems to pick up on that type of stuff."

Souji looked up at Kanji, the smile still on his face, "Are you going to tell her or just let her come to her own conclusions?"

"Probably," Kanji shrugged. "I don't think she'd mind, as long as I'm happy. What about your parents?"

"They're too wrapped up in their work right now," Souji's voice trailed off; he hadn't really thought much about his parents' approval on the relationship, and he truly doubted whether or not it would matter. "I'll have to wait until I see them to tell them about this."


	14. Chapter 14

Author's Note: Sorry this took so long to put up. College and life seemed to suddenly pop in and need my attention but I finally managed to get back to writing. To make up for that hiatus I wanted to let you all know that there will be a sequel of sorts to this story. I've been planning it for a while and I know it won't be nearly as long as this, but it will still be fun. ^-^ Anywho, enjoy!

* * *

It started to seem like things were slowly spiraling out of control. Naoto had insisted that everyone needed a physical to make sure that spending time in the other world was having some ill effects. Luckily they all checked out fine, though it was startling to find that Teddie couldn't be examined. Not too long after Souji had received a note advising him to stop saving the people who had been kidnapped and that the one responsible couldn't be caught. No one in the group had an inkling who could be behind this but everyone agreed that the person knew where Souji lived and what he was doing.

They all had hoped that the school's Culture Festival would be a way to get rid of their nerves but it seemed the Yosuke had a different plan. The brunette took it upon himself to sign the girls up for a pageant that Miss Kashiwagi had planned. In an odd turn of events the boys soon found themselves signed up for a male pageant, something that they couldn't back out of. They had entered a stalemate and the only thing that they could all agree upon was that the girls had to help the boys dress up.

The first day of the Culture Festival was rather lackluster and embarrassing. Souji had found himself helping his class with their room's theme: Group Date Café. He wasn't too surprised that no-one was stopping by but felt a little bad for the class president. Kanji had wandered in at an inopportune time and was quickly wrapped into helping them get other students to join in. The time ended with Souji feeling a little embarrassed and uncomfortable, having nominated himself to sit on the girl's side of the table and nearly confessing that his choice for a date was Kanji.

Souji, Kanji, and Yosuke strolled after the rest of their friends, their heads hung low as they feared the coming pageant. They slipped into the classroom that had been set aside for the event, each one grumbling as the girls began to rifle through bags filled with clothes. Kanji glared at Yosuke, jabbing him in the side angrily as his way of letting the brunette know he wasn't happy with the situation.

"Why're you guys just standing there?" Chie grinned. "Come on, hurry up and sit down."

"Come on now, Kanji-kun!" Rise said in a sing-song voice, patting one of the seats. "Over here!"

The girls knew they had to take the initiative, finally seizing the boys and pulling them over to the desks. They had nearly two hours to prepare and it seemed like they were planning on using every last second. Yukiko whispered an apology to Souji, mentioning that it wasn't her idea to do this in the first place. He smiled in response and nodded as he took his seat.

"What about me?" Teddie asked with a slight pout. He smiled slightly at the confused look received from the others. "It turns out I'm entering this too. I must win this contest to see my dreams realized!"

"He seemed bored," Yosuke laughed, "so we signed him up as a last-minute contestant."

Chie cocked an eyebrow, "So you're making him suffer too, huh? Well if he's signed up there's nothing we can do about it." She glanced at Naoto, a smile crossing her face as she began to work things through in her mind. The young detective seemed to realize she was being eyed and quickly met Chie's gaze with a nervous smile. "Naoto-kun, can you lend us a hand? We'll leave Teddie to you!"

"M-me?" Naoto stuttered.

Teddie grinned, clapping his hands together and throwing his arms around the surprised young lady. "The Naoto-Teddie team will be unstoppable! First, I need some dazzling makeup!"

"Well then, um," Naoto stammered as she wriggled out of Teddie's grasp. "Then I'll go borrow a makeup kit from someone." She darted out of the room, her face flushed with embarrassment as Teddie rushed after her.

Yukiko and Chie went to work on Souji and Yosuke respectively, but as Rise began to search through her bag she stopped and frowned. "I could've sworn I packed it," she grumbled. "Kanji, I have to run home; looks like I didn't pack the wig I was gonna use."

Kanji winced at the mention of a wig but gave Rise a smile, "Don't worry, Rise, the pageant is two hours away so you have enough time. It's not like I'm goin' anywhere." The two laughed at what he had said, Rise quickly excusing herself and hurrying out of the room. Kanji's laughter quickly died off and he slumped into his chair. "I blame you for all of this, Yosuke-senpai," he growled.

"What? It's Chie's fault," Yosuke replied, turning his head to give the younger boy a nasty look.

Chie quickly reprimanded the brunette, bopping him on the head. "Quit moving, Yosuke." She forced him to look at her, taking out some make up and examining his face closely. "Besides," Chie said as she began to apply some blush, "you started this whole thing."

Deciding to wander the halls instead of wait for Rise's return Kanji left, wondering if he could find something to drink. Much to his surprise he found a lot of students milling about and talking about both of the upcoming pageants. He was starting to have doubts about the whole ordeal but knew that he'd have to make do since Kashiwagi wouldn't accept anyone backing out.

After fifteen minutes of endless wandering Kanji made his way back to the classroom, a little surprised to find Chie, Yukiko, and Naoto waiting outside of the room. He paused, "What's goin' on? They kick you out or somethin'?"

Yukiko shook her head, "Yosuke refuses to come out but the others are okay."

"Don't blame 'em," Kanji muttered. "Rise back yet?"

"She says she's still looking for her wig," Chie replied as she flipped open her phone. "Apparently it won't take too long to dress you up so you two don't have to worry about a time constraint."

"I'm just surprised that we managed to finish in such a timely manner," Naoto piped in. "I thought it would be harder to work with Teddie but it seems like he knew more about make-up than I did."

Yukiko suddenly blushed, "Y-yeah turns out that Teddie is a pretty cute girl." A morbid curiosity over took Kanji and he didn't hesitate to walk into the room, the girls following close behind.

Teddie quickly bounded up to him with a bright smile; he wore a waist length blonde wig and blue dress that reminded Kanji of an Alice in Wonderland cartoon he had seen years ago. "How do I look?" he asked, twirling happily and posing once he came to a stop. "I'm thinking that I'd look like this if I was a girl."

Kanji could feel himself blush with embarrassment as he gawked at the blonde boy as he paraded around the room. "Yeah, good for you, Teddie," he stammered.

"At least he looks good," Yosuke spat from his seat. He stood up, obviously self-conscious about his own appearance as he tugged at the bottom of his skirt. Part of his hair had been taken to the side in an odd pigtail, held in place by what looked like an old barrette. "I don't know why you put me in this thing, Chie; it's too short."

Chie grinned, "Well you like it when a girl wears 'em that short, so I just thought we'd keep up the style."

The door slid open again and Kanji turned around, expecting to see Rise ready to attack him with his own costume. Instead he watched in shock as Souji strolled into the room with a shinai proudly carried over his shoulder; he wore the school's female uniform with an odd air of pride, looking more like a girl with the soft make-up that Yukiko had applied and a long, silver braided wig over his natural hair.

"I think I found a decent prop," Souji said with a grin. He posed with the shinai as best he could; trying to mimic images of kendo fighters he had seen. The pose dropped when the girls began to laugh, "It also doubles as an actual weapon."

"W-well," Yukiko said as her laugh turned nervous, "I think we better leave them alone until the pageant."

"You're right," Chie snickered. They dodged out of the way of Souji as they exited the door, Chie quickly poking her head back in, "Good luck ladies."

"I can't wait until this day is over," Yosuke grumbled as he slumped into the seat of a desk.

Souji grinned at Kanji and slowly edged closer to him, "So, do you think I would've made a cute girl?"

Kanji could feel himself blush as he looked at Souji, "Y-yeah." He couldn't tell if he was being truthful, not really knowing if his senpai was cute for a girl, but for some reason he found the older boy extremely cute dressed in drag. The thought caused the rosy tint in his cheeks to grow deeper.

"Don't worry, Yosuke," Teddie said, suddenly throwing his arms around the sulky brunette. "I think you'd make a hot girl."

"G-get off me," Yosuke cried as he jumped to his feet. He looked at Kanji and Souji, quickly blushing and feeling self-conscious once more. "All of you are just plain weird," he grumbled trying to adjust his skirt once more.

Souji smiled slightly and looked at Kanji, "You wanna walk around? I don't want to stay cooped up in this room for an hour." Kanji agreed nervously, following Souji out of the room and into the vacant hall. The silver haired boy rested the shinai over his shoulder and tentatively took hold of the younger boy's hand; Kanji looked at him, obviously nervous, but all Souji could do was smile.

They made their way to the roof and basked in the sun. They could hear students milling about on school grounds but it was surprising to find that the roof was vacant. Kanji took the opportunity, after finally gathering his courage, and pulled Souji close. Their lips met instantly and they stumbled around until Kanji's back was resting against the wall, his hands resting on Souji's waist to hold him in place.

"Seems like you're getting a kick out of me dressing like a girl," Souji whispered as he broke the kiss. He met Kanji's slightly embarrassed gaze, a mischievous smile crossing his face as he leaned into the younger boy's body.

"I don't know what it is," Kanji stammered. He rested his head against the wall, letting out a groan as he felt Souji's hand touch him softly through the denim of his pants. "For some reason seeing you in that skirt just set me off."

Souji laughed softly before leaning forward and kissing Kanji roughly, the kiss deepening as their tongues clashed. He worked quickly to undo the younger boy's pants before breaking the kiss and dropping to his knees. Kanji smiled softly, taking in a shaky breath as he felt the older boy's mouth engulf him. "F-fuck," he breathed, his hand tangling through the strands of Souji's wig. "You don't know how much I want you right now."

"Maybe you can show me later," Souji said, his hand working Kanji's length.

"W-what do you mean?" Kanji managed to ask, his eyes wide.

Another smile snaked across Souji's face; he ran his tongue down Kanji's length, enjoying the feel of him shuddering. "I think you can figure that out," he grinned before taking the boy into his mouth once more.

Kanji closed his eyes and rested his head against the wall, letting his mind fill itself to the brim with thoughts of what could be. His imagination seemed to be too much as Souji continued to work on him. "Senpai . . . I . . . I. . ." His voice trailed off, turning into a grunt as he released into the older boy's waiting mouth.

Souji slowly stood, readjusting his wig and smiled as Kanji's arms snaked around him. He stopped the boy's wandering hands quickly, his smile turning slightly devious. "Why don't we continue later?"

"I like that idea," Kanji smiled, planting a playful kiss on Souji's forehead.

"Good thing Yukiko didn't put lipstick on me," Souji muttered as he studied Kanji's face. He smiled and quickly trotted towards the door, motioning for the younger boy to hurry. "We need to see if Rise is here with your outfit."

Kanji muttered something as he fixed his clothes and rounded the corner after Souji. The silver haired boy beamed, reaching for Kanji's hand as he pushed open the door. Both boys quickly froze as they came face to with Yosuke, the brunette blushing profusely and trying his best to avoid eye contact.

"Rise-chan is l-looking for you, Kanji." Yosuke stammered.

"Damn," Kanji growled. He rummaged for his phone, cursing again when he noticed the time. "I'll see you guys on stage; looks like Rise took her time finding that stupid wig." Without much thought he gave Souji a peck on the cheek before bounding down the stairs and out of sight.

Souji eyed Yosuke, waiting until the brunette made brief eye contact before he said anything. "So, how long have you been here?"

Yosuke's face turned a deeper red and he shot Souji a glare, "Shut up."

**********

The Amagi Inn was as breath taking as the pictures Souji had seen. Yukiko had managed to acquire two rooms for the group, deciding to continue the day's affairs and include Nanako since her father was going away on business. The pageants had ended without much surprise; Teddie was named the winner of the men's competition and Naoto had won against the girls despite refusing to wear a swimsuit. In the end, though, it seemed like everyone had some sort of fun and it was only going to get better as the night wore on.

The boys attempted to enjoy the Inn's hot spring but the moment they walked in they were quickly attacked. The girls had taken it upon themselves to commandeer the hot spring for most of the night, shrieking like banshees the moment they noticed members of the other gender walking in. Dodging a barrage of buckets the guys escaped the hot spring in one piece and decided to resign themselves to their room.

After changing back into the Inn's yukata Souji looked around and noticed that someone was missing. "Where did Teddie run off to?"

Yosuke shrugged and took a seat at the table, "He said he was going to the front desk for something; he wouldn't tell me what it was though."

"He's probably trying to sneak into the girls' room," Kanji grumbled. He took a seat at the table before flopping onto his back and staring at the ceiling. "I always thought that my first time at an inn like this would be fun, but it seems like I was wrong."

The door to the room was suddenly pushed open, Teddie grinning ear to ear as he slipped in with something hidden behind his back. Souji watched in silence as the blonde hurried to the table and sat down with pride, producing a rather large bottle of unopened sake. This caught Kanji's attention and he sat up abruptly with wide eyes, Yosuke matching his expression though it seemed more out of surprise then joy.

"How the hell did you get that?" Yosuke asked.

"It doesn't matter 'how' he got it," Kanji replied as he grabbed the bottle, "it's how the hell are we gonna drink this?"

The grin on Teddie's face only widened, "I managed to get the lady at the desk to give it to me for free because when you have 'skills' like I do anything is possible." He quickly crawled over to one of the cabinets and studied the doors before opening one and pulling out a few cups. "When men have trouble with the ladies, they drink! So, let's get to drinking!"

"But we're not old enough," Yosuke stammered.

Kanji grinned as he opened the bottle and began to pour the contents into the cups as Teddie held them out. "Hasn't stopped me before," he said, pushing a glass over to the brunette. "Besides, it's not like we have to drive anywhere and we're safe in our room."

Souji joined the group at the table, taking his own glass in hand and eyeing the contents. Once everyone had their cups they gave cheers to themselves, Teddie taking the initiative and claiming that they would all become better men because of it. With a deep breath they downed their shots, all but Kanji wincing at the bitter taste and nearly going into a coughing fit. The bleached blonde just smiled and began to pour more into everyone's glass.

"Damnit," Yosuke coughed, "how can anyone drink that?"

Teddie wrinkled his nose and pouted slightly, "I liked the fruity drinks at the club better than this."

"Well this will actually get you drunk," Souji snickered. Teddie flashed him a confused looked and the silver haired boy just sighed. "The drinks weren't alcoholic, Teddie, they were just regular drinks."

"But I felt drunk," Teddie muttered.

"Well you weren't," Kanji replied as he presented the boy with his refilled cup. "After a few more of these, though, you will be."

True to Kanji's words the boys began to feel the effects of the alcohol after a few more drinks. It wasn't a surprise that Teddie was the first one to start acting strangely, draping his arms over Souji before trying his hardest to cuddle with a tipsy Yosuke. Souji laughed as the brunette pushed Teddie away and tried his best to keep his distance. The silver haired boy couldn't tell whether or not he was drunk but he knew he was at least tipsy, noticing, though, that Kanji didn't seem to be affected by the drink at all.

"You're not feeling a thing, are you?" Souji asked, finally voicing his thoughts.

Kanji blinked, pausing before he took another shot of sake. "Kinda but I have had a few drinks before."

"I'm hot," Teddie whined, shrugging off his haori. "Does drinking make you hot?"

Yosuke and Souji looked at Kanji, waiting for an answer. The younger boy seemed surprised by their response but nodded, "Y-yeah, sometimes but I don't think you should start strippin'."

"I don't think any of us want to see that," Yosuke added.

Teddie frowned slightly, sipping at his sake. "I wonder why we couldn't be closer to the girls' room."

"They're afraid we'd sneak in to take a peek at something we shouldn't," Kanji said before taking another shot of sake.

The frown on the blonde's face deepened and he followed Kanji's example, taking another shot. He seemed to lose himself in his thoughts before a bright smile flowered on his face. "Who needs girls?"

"What?" The other boys said this in unison, each one a little flustered by Teddie's sudden change of attitude.

"You heard me!" Teddie grinned, his eyes slowly glazing over. "It's not like we have to be with girls. I've seen some manga that have two boys in a relationship and it's just as romantic. Girls can be with girls too, so we don't have to worry about them being alone."

Yosuke let out a nervous laugh, "I don't think you know what you're talking about."

Teddie shook his head, leaning over the table and motioning for the others to lean in as well. "I heard some people at your school talking about some guys being gay for each other."

Laughter suddenly erupted from Kanji, causing the other boys to jump in response. The younger boy covered his mouth in an attempt to silence himself. "S-sorry," he snickered, "but hearing you say that is just too funny."

"I don't think this is something I want to talk about," Yosuke replied. His gaze met with Souji's for a moment and he felt his face suddenly flush, causing the slightest smile to appear on the silver haired boy's face. Before he could do anything else Yosuke suddenly found Teddie trying to climb into his lap once more. "Will you cut that out?"

"But I like you," Teddie slurred as he pawed at Yosuke. This time he managed to succeed in his task, crawling into the boy's lap and nuzzling against him. "We can be lonely together, Yosuke-kun."

"Wow," Souji grinned, "looks like all that sake is hitting him at once."

Yosuke shoved Teddie off his lap and quickly moved over to the futon he had laid claim to. "T-this is just getting too weird; I'm going to sleep."

Kanji stretched, "That might not be such a bad idea; I think we should all call it a night."

The boys quickly retreated to their respective futons as Souji turned off the lights. The sound of Teddie's soft snoring quickly filled the room as he seemed to pass out the moment his head touched the pillow. Souji lay beneath his blanket for a few minutes, letting his eyes adjust to the faint light and listening for the sounds of sleep from his companions. He could hear Kanji moving restlessly in his own futon and he took that as a silent cue. With catlike silence the silver haired boy crawled out of his futon and into Kanji's, surprising the younger boy as he rolled over.

"Wh-what's up?" Kanji whispered.

A soft smile appeared on Souji's face, "How about we continue what we started earlier?" Even in the darkness Souji could see Kanji blush in response.

"N-now? What about Yosuke and Teddie; they'll hear us." Kanji stammered.

"We can do this if we're quiet," Souji whispered. He didn't move, waiting for the younger boy to respond before he tried to do anything. The response, though, came as hungry kiss and tight embrace. They explored each other's bodies, both stifling their moans as things intensified and they pulled off the other's clothing. Souji was surprised when he noticed how turned on he was knowing that Teddie and Yosuke were only a few feet away and he began to wonder if Kanji was feeling the same thing.

"What do you want me to do to you?" Kanji whispered. Souji felt his heart fluttered when he heard Kanji's voice and he began to stammer, causing a sly smile to cross the younger boy's face. Kanji wrapped his hand around Souji's manhood and smiled wider as he felt the boy shudder at the contact. "Tell me what you want."

Souji could feel himself blushing as he thought of what he wanted to say but, for a moment, he couldn't bring himself to speak. "R-each into my bag's pocket," he whispered. "I think you'll figure it out." He took in a deep breath as Kanji quickly ruffled through his bag and pulled out a small bottle. Souji could feel the younger boy tense slightly and he pulled him close to try and reassure him. "If you don't think we're ready for this," he breathed, "we can wait."

"This wasn't really the situation I pictured," Kanji said with an awkward smile, "but I don't think either of us want to stop."

Without another word Souji took the bottle of lube from Kanji and squeezed some into his hand. Before he knew what was happening Kanji felt the cool liquid being spread over his length, quickly stifling a moan as he bit his lip. He found Souji's lips and kissed him deeply, loosing himself in the momentary pleasure.

Souji broke the kiss and rolled over, not quite sure how things were supposed to happen but he felt his worries slip away as Kanji kissed neck softly. The younger boy wrapped his arms around him and slowly pressed himself against Souji. Both let out gasps as the head slipped into the older boy, both stopping for a moment to gain control of their senses.

"Are you okay?" Kanji whispered.

"Nothing I can't handle," Souji replied softly.

Biting his lip Kanji slowly pressed himself deeper, enjoying the new sensation and the new sounds Souji made. He nipped at the older boy's ear as he drew out slightly and then slowly pressed deeper. Kanji moaned as he slowly found a rhythm and Souji moaned in response, stroking himself in time with the other boy's rhythm.

"Souji. . . I'm gonna. . ." Kanji moaned, his voice trailing off. He felt his whole body shudder as he released into the older boy, gritting his teeth against the urge to moan loudly in response. Souji climaxed a moment later, Kanji managing to catch the boy's mouth and kiss him deeply. The two finally lay in silence, basking in the afterglow and embracing for what seemed like an eternity.


	15. Chapter 15

Author's note: Yikes! I've been gone for too long thanks to school. Luckily, though, I have my own computer now and some time to continue this story. I want to thank people for reading this and commenting and wanting me to continue. I love knowing that people enjoy this! I'm currently working on the next chapter and that should be up no later then Monday. Enjoy!

Edit: Quick note! Dojima may seem OOC but I always thought he'd be a little more vocal in some parts. And the whole handcuff thing seems legit to me because, well, he's pretty by the books on things and I thought he'd do something like. Either that or I just wanted handcuffs on Souji. XD Either way, if that doesn't seem right, ignore it.

* * *

"How're you feeling, Nanako-chan?" Souji settled in his seat across from his cousin, still feeling a little concerned. She had fallen ill a few days earlier, though it seemed nothing more then a cold it was still lingering.

Nanako smiled nodded, "I'm fine, big bro!" The smile faded slightly as she glanced at the TV. "Dad's late." As if on cue the doorbell rang, causing her to jump to her feet and hurry towards the door, wondering out loud if her father had forgotten his keys. As quickly as she had gotten up Nanako walked slowly back towards Souji, obviously disappointed. "It was the delivery man. He was asking where Mr. Takahashi's house is. . . ." As she began to move back towards the table the phone rang; she sighed to herself and quickly picked it up. "Hello, this is the Dojima residence." Nanako's face quickly brightened, "Oh, hi Dad! Uh-huh. . . All right. It's okay, I know it's your job. Uh-huh. . . Uh-huh. Big bro's with me, so. . . Okay, bye-bye." She hung up and turned towards Souji, "Dad says he's coming home tomorrow. But I'm not lonely, you're here with me!"

Souji smiled but it faded slightly as he noticed Nanako rubbing her arms in an attempt to warm herself. "Do you want to bring out the kotatsu, Nanako-chan? Your dad said we could pull it out if it got too cold."

A bright smile quickly formed on Nanako's face as she took hold of Souji's hand, trying to pull him along towards the kotatsu's summer home. It didn't take long before the two of them had it set up, Nanako humming happily the entire time. She demanded that she would be the one to turn it on and Souji happily agreed.

"Okay, I'm turning it on!" Nanako beamed. There was an audible click but no response from the kotatsu. Nanako frowned and tried it again but got the same response. "Its not coming on. Looks like its broken."

Souji smiled slightly, "How about we go find the best kotatsu we can?"

Nanako's face quickly lit up, "We can buy one? At Junes?" She let out a squeal of joy, hurrying around the table to wrap Souji in a hug. "Yay! When you have some time lets go to Junes!"

The next day was spent at Junes, though Souji had wished it was spent searching for a new kotatsu rather then speculating about the next kidnapping. The Midnight Channel the night before had shown someone but the image had been too fuzzy to make out who it could have been. They spent the entire day trying to pull their thoughts together and all they could agree on was that it was a politician that had been in town and that Teddie hadn't sensed anything new in the other world. In the end all they could do was agree to watch it again that night.

**********

"Hey, I'm back!"

Nanako sprang to her feet as she heard her father's voice, rushing to the door and hugging him tightly. "Welcome back," she looked at Dojima with a bright smile. "Dad, the kotatsu's broken. Can me and big bro go buy a new one?"

"The kotatsu? Ahh, it's already that season, huh? Yeah, the weather has been odd lately." Dojima murmured, rubbing his neck. "All right, I'll leave it up to you. Get which ever kind you want."

"Is that a letter?" Nanako asked as she looked at her father's hand.

For a moment it seemed like Dojima had forgotten he was holding something, gazing at the envelope in surprise. "It's for you but. . ." His voice trailed off as he placed it on the table.

Souji grabbed it quickly, his heart racing as he noticed his name scrawled across the front and no sign of a return address. Without thinking he ripped the envelope open and pulled out the letter. A single sentence was hastily written, 'if you don't stop this time someone close will be put in and killed.' Souji felt his body grow numb as he stared at the letter, his mind going into overdrive as he tried to pull his thoughts in order.

Dojima suddenly ripped the letter out of Souji's grasp, "What the hell is this?" Souji made an attempt to grab for it but Dojima moved out of the way. "Not often we get letters with no return address on them." He scanned the letter before turning his gaze towards Souji, his eye cold and his mouth frowning slightly. "So I was right," he growled. Dojima knelt beside Souji, thrusting the letter in front of the boy's face. "Be straight with me, you're involved in the case, aren't you? What're you up?"

Swallowing hard Souji quickly explained all that he knew, figuring it was better to get it all out rather then hide it from Dojima. As he listened to his own story he realized how absurd it all sounded but all he could do was hope his uncle believed him.

"So, you're not going to be honest with me." Dojima suddenly seized Souji by the collar, dragging the boy to his feet with anger flaring in his eyes. "I've been treating you like family," he snapped. "That's why I never questioned you on this. But I see that was a mistake. I should've intervened much earlier because I care for you. I will have the truth from you today."

"D-dad. . ."

Nanako's voice seemed to break through Dojima's anger and he quickly released Souji. "We'll continue this somewhere else, but I'm not letting you leave until I'm convinced. This is for your own good, got that?" He fished into his pocket, revealing a pair of handcuffs and putting them on Souji. Dojima looked at Nanako, obviously a little disappointed in himself for letting things get out of hand. "It's alright. We'll be right back, so don't wait up for us to go to bed. . . Okay?"

Nanako looked at Souji, her eyes darting between the handcuffs and his eyes; it was obvious that she was frightened. He smiled the best that he could, hoping it would calm her. "We'll be back soon, Nanako-chan. I want you keep warm, okay?"

"Okay." Nanako nodded, still not convinced. "I'll be waiting."

**********

Souji had never seen the inside of an interrogation room and he honestly wished he hadn't. He spent the next few hours answering the same questions for his uncle and Adachi, feeling more and more frustrated when it became obvious that neither man was believing him. He divulged the secret of his persona and the world inside the TV but it made him sound crazy. In the end Souji had his phone taken from him and he was being held at the station overnight.

"Go inside TVs. . . And personas, huh? Well, you can't blame him" Adachi sighed. Souji looked at him out of the corner of his eye, wishing his uncle's partner had left as well. The timid detective noticed the boy gazing at him and he let out a nervous laugh. "I mean, sure, I want to believe you and I know Dojima-san brought you here and asked you those questions because he wants to believe you too." Adachi paused and cleared his throat, his nerves seeming to get him. "Plus, you know, you'll be safe here. He probably freaked out once he saw that letter and thought he had to protect you. Like what a father would do for his son! I think he cares for you a lot."

"Interesting way of showing it," Souji mumbled as he slumped in his chair.

Adachi let out a defeated sigh. "So yeah, don't take it so hard." There was a moment of uncomfortable silence between the two before Adachi began to speak again. "Y'know, Dojima-san's started to looking into the people involved with the first case again. Guess he wasn't satisfied with the way the case wrapped up after all. That's why he's even more sensitive about this and that-" Adachi stopped in mid-sentence his face growing red with embarrassment. "A-Ahaha! I better shut up now before I get chewed out again. Alright, I'll be just outside. If you need anything just let me know."

Souji spent the next hour pacing through the room, kicking himself for opening the letter in front of Dojima in the first place. He had been surprised, though, and he knew he wasn't thinking straight. Souji glanced out the window that overlooked the near empty parking lot, noticing that it was still raining. He glanced at the clock on the wall, feeling his stomach knot itself as the hands slowly ticked over to midnight. Knowing he had nothing better to do Souji flipped on the small TV and held his breath.

After a moment of static the screen grew blurry like it always did, this time revealing a small silhouette. Souji squinted and tried to focus more everything on the screen. He noticed the person's hair, they were in pigtails so it had to be a school girl. As he continued to study the silhouette Souji had an epiphany that nearly caused his heart to stop. It was Nanako-chan.

Souji instinctively reached for his phone before he remembered that Dojima had taken it away and he didn't know how to dial out with the phone in the room. "Damnit," Souji cried, slamming his hand against the wall. He ran scenarios through his mind, trying to think of some way to get out and contact someone but he knew that no matter how dopey he seemed to be. Even if Souji could get out of the room he'd have to sneak past Dojima which seemed impossible itself. He took a seat, rest his head against the cold table and prayed that someone had seen the same thing he saw and came to the same conclusion.

"Hm? What are you guys doing here?" The sound of Dojima's voice roused Souji from his thoughts. He glanced up at the clock; only ten minutes had passed. "Hey, what do you think you're doing? I didn't say you could in there!"

As the door flew open Souji sprang to his feet, his heart beating wildly in his chest as Teddie, Yosuke, and Kanji burst into the room. Each one was drenched and out of breath, making it obvious that they arrived on foot. "Nanako-chan's missing," Yosuke blurted.

Dojima grabbed Yosuke's arm, his eyes wide with horror. "Wha-what do you mean?"

"Naoto's on the phone, calling from Nanako-chan's. . . I mean, your house." Yosuke held up his phone, offering it to the detective who took it without a thought.

"Shirogane? You there?" Dojima barked. "What the hell's going on?" The color drained from his face as he listened to Naoto. After a moment he tossed the phone onto the table and dialed his own. Dojima held his breath as he waited for an answer but there was nothing. He closed his eyes and disconnected the call, "Nanako."

"D-Dojima-san. . ." Adachi murmured.

"Is it trued?" Dojima breathed, turning his eyes to Souji. "Has Nanako really been. . . ?"

Souji nodded, "It's true."

"Why?" Dojima cried, sitting on the bed beside him. He cradled his head for a moment and seemed to fight off the tears forming. "Why Nanako?"

Yosuke swallowed hard, "Um, it's probably because the media-"

Dojima pushed himself off the bed, his face shifting from it's saddened state to one filled with rage. He went to the phone and pressed on of the preset numbers, ignoring Adachi's question.

"Traffic Division, Ohta speaking."

"There's been a kidnapping. Get your men on it immediately. Start with checkpoints along the highway."

"Checkpoints? Umm, could you explain the situation a little more-"

Dojima glared at the phone, "Quit griping and get to it! The victim's a seven-year-old girl. . . My daughter!"

"You're daughter? What about the scene? What makes you think this is a kidnapping?"

"Th-that's. . ." Dojima's voice trailed breaking his anger momentarily. "Look, this could be connected to that multiple murder case."

"Connected?" Ohta laughed. "But we caught the killer. How long has she been missing? Have you received any notices or ransom letters?"

"N-no, but. . ." the detective stammered. "Damnit there's no time for this right now."

"Um, a-alright. . . I'll try contacting each of the departments." After that the phone went silent.

"Even if you tell 'em its connected to the murders, we can't prove it," Adachi sighed. "And everyone on the force thinks this case is over and done with. . ." He looked up, noticing Dojima was moving towards the door. The young detective took in a deep breath and stepped in the man's path, "Wh-where are you going?"

"I'm going to go look for my daughter." Dojima roared, shoving Adachi aside. "If this is connected to that murder case, the top brass won't accept the facts until it's too late. I'm not gonna wait for those clowns!"

Adachi's gaze turned hard as he stared at Dojima. "But do you even have any ideas or leads on who took her? If they used a car there's no way-"

Dojima suddenly lashed out, striking Adachi across the face with the back of his hand. "Shut up, that's why I'm hurrying." Before anyone could react Dojima bolted from the room.

"What am I going to do?" Adachi groaned. "Dojima-san's run off half cocked."

"Adachi-san, we'll go look for her too. So please, let him go." Yosuke blurted.

"You know I can't," Adachi breathed. The door suddenly flew open, causing Adachi to jump as Chie, Yukiko, and Naoto burst into the room. "Whoa, hey. . . If I let you guys in here then I'm really in trouble. Besides we don't even know if this thing-"

"Quit your bitching." Kanji barked. "Now ain't the time for that shit." The room grew quiet as everyone stared at Kanji. He had been silent up until that moment but now he seemed to boiling over with anger. "The hell are we sitting around here for when this guy's family's in danger?" Kanji moved closer to Adachi, obviously scaring the young detective. "You gonna own up if something happens? Huh?"

Naoto frowned slightly, "Kanji-kun."

Adachi regained his composure as Kanji took a step back, turning his gaze to the floor but still seeming to seethe with anger. "I know how you feel but if you don't tell me what's going on there's really nothing I can do."

A slight smile seemed to pass across Naoto's lips. "So you agree to release him once we explain the situation? Very well then."

"N-no," Adachi stammered, "that's not what I meant."

"In any case if we run out blindly we'll have no idea where to begin," Naoto mused. "Lets all take a moment to stop and sort out the situation. Perhaps this will help Adachi-san understand as well." The group agreed to Naoto's idea and began to go over every possible idea they had. After what seemed like the longest five minutes they had it narrowed down to a delivery man. It was the only person that Nanako-chan would open the door to and not consider them a stranger.

"I better go tall Dojima-san," Adachi said as he darted out of the room.

Naoto grabbed the file that Adachi had looked through and read it aloud, "After resigning from his last job he took up the family delivery business. Before that he was. . . a council secretary!" She slammed the file back on to the table, "Taro Namatame!"

"The enka singer's husband!" Souji groaned.

"All we know about him is his occupation," Naoto continued, "but I'd say that's enough of a lead to tell us where to go next."

"I give him the clue and he still finds a reason to chew me out," Adachi said as he reappeared in the room.

Chie chewed on her lip, "Is he going to be okay? The killer's not just a normal guy."

The group looked at Adachi, silently pleading with him. "If there's been a break in the case," he said, suddenly turning towards the door, "I'd better hurry to the scene. I'll just have to hope nothing happens while I'm gone. I didn't see anything." Without looking back Adachi left.

Yosuke took in a deep breath, "Let's go to Namatame's place. Dojima-san's probably on his way now."


	16. Chapter 16

Author's Note: So apparently I lied and I'm on a roll! I have a few things I need to say before the other chapters are written. In this chapter I didn't do the battle with Namatame here because I thought it would take away from the drama of the situation. I will be writing out the battle with Adachi but I won't be doing the battle for the true ending, which this story follows. Why? Well thats going to be hell for me and I want the ending of this story to be done in a nice package! And if things go right I may have a 'sequel' of sorts. :3 But you'll have to wait and see for that!

* * *

Souji hated hospitals for some reason; maybe it was the fact that it was so sterile or perhaps it was the fact that it made everything smell like medicine. Either way he knew he had to put all of that aside and stay where he was. Naoto agreed to stay in Dojima's room with him, giving him silent company as they waited for the detective to regain consciousness. Souji didn't know the extent of his uncle's injuries but he knew that the car hadn't done too well and he could only assume how Dojima had faired.

A low groan suddenly escaped Dojima, causing Souji to hurry to his uncle's side with Naoto falling suit. Slowly the detective opened his eyes, wincing against the hospital lights before finally noticing the two bodies at his bedside. "You guys. . ." he breathed.

A soft smile of relief crossed Naoto's face. "Are you all right?"

"I must look like hell right now." Dojima closed his eyes, "Nanako. . . she's my reason for living. If I lose her. . . I might as well be dead." His voice trailed for a moment as he opened his eyes, tears slowly falling down his face as he stared into the lights. "She must be so scared right now. . . waiting for someone to save her. And. . . here I am. . ." Dojima's voice trailed off as cough racked his body. He paused a moment closing his eyes once more as he let out a sob, "When she needs me most, I'm helpless. What kind of father am I? I can't even protect my own daughter."

Souji slowly took his uncle's hand into his own, feeling a strong pang of sadness and he felt Dojima's hand tighten around his own. "If anything happens to Nanako, I'll make Namatame pay." Dojima opened his eyes and looked at Souji, "You can save Nanako, right? I trust you. . . Please. . . save her for me. You're the only ones I can turn to right now."

"We'll do everything we can," Souji stammered, finding it hard to keep his own emotions in check. It was difficult to see his uncle lying in the hospital bed, powerless against what was happening.

"We will rescue Nanako-chan at any cost." Naoto explained. "It may take some time but you must put your faith in us and wait for us to return with her."

Souji spent the night at the hospital knowing full well what they would be doing the next day. He refused the company of the others, knowing they were only trying to help but he wanted to deny himself such comforts while Dojima was in such emotional pain. Souji wasn't surprised in the least that he didn't get any sleep but his determination was more than enough to keep him going.

**********

They attained their victory over Namatame but in the end thing had been bitter sweat. As Souji stood over his unconscious body with a feeling of relief he heard Rise cry out to Nanako. He rushed down the stairs, his heart racing and his breath caught in his chest as he say Rise holding Nanako tightly in her arms and getting no response. Rise said something that Souji didn't hear as he stared at the pained look on his cousin's face; something had gone wrong.

"This place must not be good for her," Teddie exclaimed. "We need to carry her out quick!"

Teddie's voice seemed to penetrate Souji's stupor and he took hold of Nanako. The others fell in step behind him as he rushed through this distorted world. He spoke to her as he ran, trying to get her to respond in some way but all she could do was whimper in pain. "You have to fight, Nanako-chan," Souji whispered. "I promised your dad you'd be okay."

Within minutes they were in Junes and Souji felt his legs give way. He slipped to the floor, hugging Nanako tightly with tears stinging in his eyes. "Nanako-chan, hang in there." he whispered. All he received in response was a pained expression and a heavy breath.

"What are we going to do?" Chie said, trying to hold back her own tears.

"She's so small and was stuck in there for so long," Kanji added. "And then there was that weird fog. Damnit!"

Naoto closed her phone and turned towards the group, "The police and paramedics will be here shortly.

**********

Exhaustion was creeping up on Souji but he continued to fend it off. He leaned against the wall outside of Nanako's hospital rooming wishing he could be in there with her. He told the others they could leave but everyone opted to stay; everyone seemed just as worried as he was. No-one spoke for the longest time and their nerves were growing shorter with every passing minute.

"Nana-chan's still small," Teddie spoke as if thinking aloud, "so her other self didn't appear like everyone else. . . And she got caught in all that craziness. I hope she'll be okay."

Yosuke looked up, "Are the doctors going to be able to help her?"

Tears suddenly sprang from Teddie's eyes, "I'm worried about Nana-chan." He seemed to catch Yosuke off guard as he turned and began to sob in the brunette's shoulder.

"But there's nothing more we can do for her," Chie replied.

"A deliveryman named Namatame. . . The possibility of Nanako-chan being targeted," Naoto muttered. "If only I had been more thorough in putting the facts together, then Nanako-chan wouldn't have had to go through this."

"That goes for me too," Yosuke sighed. He reluctantly put his arms around Teddie, trying to comfort him as he continued to sob. "If I hadn't stood there like a lump in front of that bastard, Nanako-chan might've been okay."

Chie closed her eyes and rested her head against the wall. "I hate myself. Why do I always panic when it matters most?"

"I couldn't do anything either," Yukiko replied, taking Chie's hand.

"I should've noticed sooner that something was wrong with that guy," Rise added.

A stray tear slowly worked its way down Naoto's cheek, "Why did I waste my time listening to what Namatame had to say? If I hadn't tried to engage him in conversation and we'd rescued Nanako-chan immediately, this wouldn't have happened."

Souji let out a heavy sigh, "Look, it's no one's fault. Stop beating yourselves up."

"But. . . I still. . ." Naoto stammered.

Kanji wheeled around, obviously annoyed as he stared at the others. "Alright, enough of this pity party. Is standing around and whining really what we oughtta be doing now?" Annoyance and anger seemed to slowly grow in Kanji's voice as he continued. "Feeling pathetic, consoling others. . . That gonna solve anything? We gotta believe in her. So stop rehashing what's already been done. Get it together, Naoto."

"Sorry," Naoto replied as she wiped away her tears. "You're absolutely right."

"It's all that bastard Namatame's fault, and he's behind bars, right?" Kanji continued. "And it ain't like we were too late for Nanako-chan."

"Yeah, that's true." Yukiko replied.

Teddie looked up from Yosuke's shoulder, wiping away his tears, "I'll come see Nana-chan every day so she'll get better faster!"

Souji smiled slightly in hopes of hiding his own worries, "That's all we can do."

"Gee Kanji," Rise grinned. "You sounded cool for a second there."

"Huh? You guys still here?" The group looked up and saw Adachi standing at the edge of their group looking surprised.

Souji cleared his throat, "Did they find out anything?"

Adachi lowered his eyes and shook his head. "Dojima-san is talking to the doctor now but they can't say anything definite until they run some tests on her. Not just Nanako-chan but the perp too. Who knows when we'll be able to hear his story." He sighed and forced a smile, "Well, it's getting late, so hurry home. The last thing we need is for you guys to collapse too."

"He's right, we should call it a night," Souji said finally noticing how tired he really was. "Nanako-chan is going to be fine. Acting all gloomy won't help anything."

Chie nodded, "When Nanako-chan's out of the hospital what should we do to celebrate?"

Yosuke rolled his eyes, "Dude, isn't it a little early for that?"

Yukiko smiled and clapped her hands together, "Why don't we reserve Junes and have a party there?"

"A party at Junes?" Yosuke sighed. "That makes no sense."

As the group began to walk down the hall Souji noticed Kanji glance at him, and slow his gait until they were side by side. "I was wondering if you wanted to crash at my place for a night or two," Kanji said softly. "I'm just assuming that, you know, being by yourself at home might not be the best thing for you."

Souji smiled slightly, "Sounds nice. I really didn't think how things would be without Nanako-chan and Dojima. I should run home and get some clothes though."

Kanji's face brightened. "Cool. I'll let Ma know and I'll see you there."

The group went their separate ways as they left the hospital, everyone's mood seeming to be brighter then before. Souji made his stop home as fast as he could, not wanting to stare at the pictures of a smiling Nanako while she lay in the hospital in pain. He grabbed two days worth of clothes, his tooth brush, and a few video games before darting out of the house and hurrying in the direction of the Tatsumi residence.

Souji found the empty roads eerie but, in a way, comforting as he listened to the wind. The last time he was out here it was to track down Dojima and he wasn't able to notice how different things looked then. He pushed the thoughts of his uncle out of his mind in hopes of bring happier thoughts to the forefront. Souji tried to focus on the fact that things could only get better from now on. Soon Dojima and Nanako would be home and things would be back to normal. Until then he had Kanji to keep him company.

"Senpai?"

The sound of Rise's voice caught Souji of guard and caused him to jump in surprise. He stared wide-eyed at the red head as she sat in front of her family's shop. She smiled slightly, "I didn't mean to scare you , Senpai."

"That's okay," Souji said with a laugh.

"What're doing out here?" Rise asked. "You looked so tired when we left the hospital I was sure you'd be sleeping by now."

Souji ran a hand through his hair nervously. "I'm staying with Kanji for a day or two. It feels a little weird being home by myself."

Rise nodded but Souji noticed a questioning look in her eye. "I can see that. Well, I hope you can get some sleep. I'll see you later, Senpai."

Without another word Souji hurried towards Kanji's house, his heart racing as he began to wonder if Rise had suspected anything out of the ordinary. As he reached for the door it slid open and Kanji greeted him happily. He took Souji's bag as he entered, telling him that his mother agreed to let him stay and that she had just gone to bed.

"We should probably do the same," Kanji yawned. "I think that fight took more outta all of us then usual."

Souji nodded in response and followed Kanji up to his room. An extra futon had been laid out with a set of freshly washed blankets. He stood in silence before turning to Kanji, "I think someone may know about us."

"Yeah," Kanji smiled as he put Souji's bag down. "Yosuke and Chie know."

"I think Rise may know too."

"Why do you think that?"

"Well, she was sitting in front of the tofu shop and asked where I was going. I told her I was staying here and she had an odd look in her eye."

Kanji shrugged, "I don't think there's anything we can do if she figures it out except hope no one believes her. For now, though, we should get some sleep." As they settled into their futons Souji rolled over and looked Kanji in the eye. The younger boy blushed slightly, "You gonna be okay?"

Souji shrugged, "I will be." They didn't break eye contact, Kanji knowing that there was still something on the older boy's mind. "D-do you think we can sleep in the same futon? I just feel a little off and. . ."

Without a word Kanji reached out and slowly pulled Souji closer. The older boy finally realized what he was doing and scooted closer until they were embracing beneath the blanket. "I want you to know that I'm here for you no matter what," Kanji whispered. He kissed Souji softly.

"Thanks." Souji murmured.


	17. Chapter 17

The days following Nanako's hospital stay seemed to be hard on everyone. Souji spent the first two days with Kanji, trying not to think of what was happening but he couldn't help it. When he finally made it home it became even more obvious how deserted things were. Souji spent as much time with the others as he could, even after they were allowed to visit Nanako, and they accommodated his sudden shift for my interactions. During those times he noticed the way Rise eyed him every time he interacted with Kanji, and the younger boy began to notice it too. Things were finally escalating to the point where the others had to know about it but neither of them knew how to broach the subject.

"If she asked it'd be easier," Kanji grumbled, stretching with a yawn. He sat across from Souji in Junes' food-court as they waited for the others to arrive. It was another weekend of nothing to do but hang out with each other.

"She's seen the way you react when Yosuke says that stuff, so I doubt she'll say anything." Souji replied with a slight smile.

A frown slowly crossed Kanji's face as he crossed his arms over his chest. "I suppose that's true but I hate the feelin' of bein' scrutinized."

"Hey!" The two looked up to see Yosuke jogging towards them still wearing a Junes apron. He panted as he came to a stop beside the table, glancing at the two boys slightly confused. "Where's everyone?" Souji shrugged in response with Kanji doing much the same. Yosuke groaned and slumped into a seat, "And here I thought I was going to be late."

"Ya know you still have your apron on, right?" Kanji asked.

The brunette mumbled in response and ripped it off, tossing it in a heap on the table. He glanced at Souji and then Kanji, clearing his throat, "I hope I wasn't interrupting anything; you two looked pretty deep in conversation."

Kanji paused for a moment, "Actually we do have a problem. Rise might now about us and we think it's about time we told everyone else."

"Wow," Yosuke said with wide eyes. "Th-that's a pretty major step."

"What's a major step?" The boys turned around just in time to see the girls coming to the table. No-one said a word as they took their seats, seeming to be confused by the sudden silent.

Chie looked at Yosuke and cocked an eyebrow, "So . . .?"

The boys glanced at each other but no one said a word. Yosuke sighed and took in a shaky breath, "Kanji and Souji are gay."

There was a chorus of responses that seemed to drown each other out. Yosuke dodged Kanji's fisted hand, jumping from his chair and putting a few feet of distance between them but the younger boy didn't make a move to go after him. Souji could feel his face burning with embarrassment and he wanted nothing more then to disappear. This wasn't how things were supposed to go but part of him knew that it was possibly the easiest thing that could have happened, even if it wasn't the most delicate.

"Is that true, Souji?" Yukiko asked, her voice wavering slightly as she spoke.

"Y-yeah," Souji's voice was barely more then a whisper when he replied. He cradled his head with his hands, unsure of what to do next.

"You don't seem too surprised, Chie-senpai." Rise said, slightly confused.

Chie let out a nervous laugh, "W-well . . . . I've known for a while now."

"For how long?" Rise and Yukiko asked in unison.

"A-around the time King Moron died."

Naoto cleared her throat, "And I noticed that there was an attraction between the two of them while we were on our school trip."

Yukiko narrowed her eyes, glaring at Yosuke. The brunette fidgeted beneath the gaze, "I found out during the school trip, too."

"So, Rise and I were the last ones to know, huh?" Yukiko asked with a frown. She turned her gaze to Souji and then to Kanji, who returned the stare. "I thought teams weren't supposed to keep information from each other."

"I think this situation is a little different, senpai." Kanji snapped.

A frown slowly appeared across Yukiko's face, "It would've been nice to before-"

"What?" Kanji asked. "Before you threw yourself at him?"

"Um, Kanji, does this mean you and senpai are an item?" Rise asked, suddenly stopping the ensuing argument.

Souji looked up to see Yukiko's face grow red, but couldn't tell what caused it. Their eyes met for a moment but Souji looked away. He could feel everyone looking at him and he knew that there was no way to dodge the question by this point. "We are."

"I need to get out of here." Yukiko turned on her heel and left as quickly as she could. Souji glanced at Chie and she nodded, knowing full well what that simple glance meant. She hurried after the raven haired girl with Naoto and Rise trailing behind.

Kanji tossed a venom filled glance at Yosuke, "Thanks a lot, you bastard."

"Hey, I didn't know this would happen." Yosuke retorted.

Souji pushed himself to his feet, "There's no point in arguing now; what's done is done. Hopefully Chie can explain things to Yukiko. We don't need this kind of stress right now."

**********

The sound of knocking brought Souji out of a restless sleep. He rolled over and glanced at the clock; it was nearly 11pm. The knock sounded again causing Souji to climb to his feet and trudge down the stairs. He had fallen asleep in his clothes again, but part of him didn't care. He wasn't getting much sleep anyway.

The lights on the first floor had been left on out of habit, which was probably why someone was knocking. Souji opened the door with a slight yawn; Kanji was on the other side holding his cell phone up. The older boy squinted as he looked at the small screen. It was a text from Chie: **Crisis Averted!**

Souji smiled, "That's good to know."

Kanji closed his phone with a nod. "Did I wake you up?"

"Not really," Souji shrugged. "You wanna come in?"

"Sure." Kanji followed his silver haired lover into the living room, both taking a seat on the couch. He slipped his arm around Souji, "You seem pretty tense; I can rub your shoulders if you want."

Souji glanced at Kanji with a sleepy smile, "Sounds nice."

The boys shifted around so Kanji could do so with ease. Souji turned the TV on to keep them occupied during low conversation points. He enjoyed the attention he was receiving; the feel of Kanji's strong grasp on his shoulders was sent jolts through his body. Every thing seemed a little hazy during the massage and Souji knew that it had been long overdue.

"Feelin' any better?" Kanji asked softly.

"Mm hm," Souji replied with a sigh.

Kanji slowly leaned closer to Souji, holding the older boy against him tightly as he kissed his neck softly. Souji's breath came out as a soft moan that caused Kanji to smile and continue his kisses. The silver haired boy leaned against his body, his eyes opening to meet Kanji's gaze.

"You trying to start something?" Souji teased.

A smile danced across Kanji's lips, "Maybe."

Souji returned the smile before kissing Kanji deeply. Their bodies ached for the other's touch and they quickly found themselves entwined on the floor. The events of the past few weeks were far from their minds as they slowly pulled off articles of clothing.

Kanji shuddered as he felt Souji touch him through his jeans, his mind reeling for a moment. "Are you ready for this?" The response he received was in the form of a hungry kiss; He had refrained from initiating anything earlier due to the hospitalizations. Now it seemed like this was an escape from what was going on in the world.

Breaking the kiss Souji pushed Kanji onto his back and began to undo the boy's pants. The younger boy let out a moan as he felt Souji's mouth wrap around his member, hissing the boy's name. Kanji ran his hand through Souji's hair and adored the feeling that shot through his body as the older boy let out a soft moan.

"Take off your pants," Kanji breathed.

A sly smile passed over his face as Souji released the younger boy. He stood over Kanji as he undid his pants, watching the young boy's gaze devour him. It was an intoxicating feeling knowing that he caused such a response in a person.

Kanji sat up suddenly, his tongue darting out and grazing against Souji's cock. The silver haired boy let a moan escape him; it felt too good for some reason. Kanji grabbed Souji's arm and forced him to his knees so he could kiss him once more.

"I need you right now," Souji whispered.

Neither boy said a word as Souji positioned himself over Kanji. He took in a sharp breath as he lowered his body, his breathing turning into a moan that Kanji echoed. It was painful at first but that pain slowly turned into euphoric pleasure. Kanji placed his hands on Souji's hip, guiding the older boy's movement as they locked into another kiss. Souji kept a slow pace in an attempt to draw out the moment but as he felt Kanji's hand wrap around his cock that rhythm seemed lost. Kanji kept pace with Souji's quickening movements, putting his fee hand on the boy's neck to hold him in place as their kiss intensified.

A low moan escaped Kanji, his body tensing as he came. Souji broke their kiss, his head rolled back as he released in the younger boy's hand. He shuddered as Kanji ran his tongue against his exposed neck, holding him close as they tried to catch their breath.

"D-do you want to stay the night?" Souji gasped.

"I don't have any other clothes."

"You probably won't need them by this point."


	18. Chapter 18

The fog wasn't lifting in the least and Souji was starting to wonder if it was ever going to leave. He pulled on his shoes and looked himself over in the mirror one last time; he had to get back to school even though things hadn't changed with Nanako and finish his exams. Yosuke made it a point to walk with him that day, trying his best to make small talk and comfort his friend. The days after the brunette had 'ousted' friends' relationship everything seemed strained. He made amends with Souji and Kanji, but it seemed like Yukiko had all but disappeared from their group.

"Man, this fog just won't quit." Yosuke mumbled. He came to a stop and looked around, squinting through the haze. He clicked his tongue, "The weather report said it might start snowing soon, but what's going to happen if it snows in this fog?"

Souji turned his eyes skyward and looked through the dingy fog. He had no idea what would happen with a sudden weather change but he knew it couldn't be good. As he turned his gaze back to the street he stumbled forward as he felt something bump into him. Letting out a cry of surprise Souji spun around to see an equally surprised Chie staring at him. After a moment the other seemed to appear out of the fog. Yukiko stood beside Chie, her gaze hard as she looked at Souji and still managing to keep her distance with Kanji.

"Where'd you guys come from?" Souji asked with a chuckle. He hadn't heard the group approach which caused him to worry about the fog even more.

Yosuke blinked, "Wow, that's quite a crowd you got there."

Chie cracked a smile, "We ran into each other back there, so we came together. The fog's so thick that sometimes you can't see your nose in front of your face." She glanced at the others and the smile widened slightly. "So everyone's forming groups now."

"It's definitely been weird lately," Yosuke replied. "It's so cold, too."

Rise looked around nervously before locking her eyes on to Souji. "Visibility is so bad, it's scary. Can I stick close to you, Senpai?" She didn't bother for a response and quickly moved to Souji's side, standing close enough not to notice his confused response.

"This girl never changes," Chie said with a roll of her eyes.

A slight frown crossed Rise's face, "It really is hard to see anything in this, though. It's just like on the other side."

Kanji's neutral expression changed slightly as he pulled his sunglasses out of his pocket and slipped them on. Even through the darkened lenses Souji noticed the surprised look in his eyes as he looked around. "G-guys, put on your glasses!" Exchanging confused looks the group followed Kanji's lead and put their sunglasses on. Sure enough the fog was no longer there.

"It's all clear," Yukiko breathed.

Swallowing hard Yosuke pulled the sunglasses down the bridge of his nose and peered over the top of them. "Wh-what the hell is going on?!" he stammered, pushing the sunglasses into their proper position.

"These glasses are meant to help us see through the fog in the other world," Naoto said thoughtfully, "but putting that aside, no glasses would improve one's visibility in fog, under normal circumstances."

Chie pursed her lips together, "Then, um, could the fog from over there be leaking into our world?" A shocked expression passed over everyone's face and they all looked at her; it seemed to make sense. Chie blushed suddenly from embarrassment. "Huh? Y-you guys think that's it!? I-I was kinds expecting you to ignore it as 'Chie being random again'." She glanced at her friends but their darkening expressions just confirmed what she was thinking. "I-it's just a thought, haha."

Souji heaved a sigh, "Anyway, today's the last day of exams, right? Let's get 'em over with so we can meet up at the special headquarters after school."

"Wow," Yukiko breathed, "we haven't used that name in a while."

**********

Sure enough after the exams were finished the group headed over to Junes. Teddie was already waiting for them at their table, seeming a little downtrodden all the while. The group to their respective places out of habit but no one bothered to move after taking notice. Chie presented the group with the local paper, lying out on the table so everyone could see.

"Here's the story about the fog," Chie explained, jabbing the article's title with a finger. "'Some specialists are raising concerns that this fog may consist harmful substances. More and more citizens are calling for an investigation into the cause of the fog and the facts about it. Though the government has begun its preliminary investigation, many feel that the causes will be hard to pinpoint." Chie's voice trailed off as she leaned back in her seat, her eyes scanning the fog around her. "Is this fog really dangerous?"

Kanji frowned slightly, "You hardly see people walking around town anymore or here either."

Rise nodded, "Everyone's too scared of the fog now to go outdoors much."

"It does seem a lot like the fog on the other side," Teddie added. "Beyond that, I'm clueless."

Naoto turned the newspaper around and glanced over the other articles. "There's another item of note here," she said softly. "A summary of Namatame's career, with details about the case. 'The suspect was having an affair with the first victim. It seems she was killed due to relationship troubles. Also in April, Ms. Saki Knoishi's body was discovered. The police are looking into a motive for the murder. In July, a boy living in Inaba performed a copycat murder. The boy was initially thought to be the culprit behind all the killings, but later suspicion was thrown upon Namatame. Last month, the suspect attempted to kidnap a seven-year-old girl of Inaba, resulting in his arrest'."

Before being able to continue with the article Souji seized the paper and folded it up; he didn't want to hear any more. Silence drifted within the group, no one quite sure how to react to the sudden removal of the newspaper. Naoto, though, cleared her throat, "It seems Namatame is still confined to his hospital bed, so further interrogation has yet to commence."

"So it's finally over," Yosuke breathed as he leaned back in his chair. "A lot of stuff's happened. But all that's left is for the police to build a case for Namatame, right?"

"But will he confess?" Souji replied.

Yosuke shrugged, "Whether he confesses or not, it was him who did everything. Getting him convicted is up to your uncle.

Rise cocked her head to the side, "But the stuff he was saying was so obviously nuts. If he says anything about the TV world he might be considered mentally unstable."

"Also, I heard that if the police don't have enough hard evidence, it's difficult to build a case," Yukiko added.

Naoto's mood seemed to sour slightly. "Yes, there are many such cases and culprits. It's the eternal conundrum for crime investigators."

"So even if they're caught, the law can't do shit?" Kanji spat.

"It's a possibility," Naoto replied softly.

Kanji slammed his hand against the table, causing his friends to jump in surprise. "Hell's up with that!? We all know who did it. You can't just let a maniac who thinks he's saving people by killing them run wild on the streets!"

"They better not dismiss something this serious because of some mental issues," Souji murmured.

"Saki-senpai," Yosuke added. "No, not just her or that announcer. . . Even King Moron is his fault. If it weren't for what he did, nobody would've tried a copycat killing. It's his fault Nanako-chan's in the hospital right now, too."

Souji felt his heart sink slightly with the thought of Nanako. Feeling the chill in the air only made his heart sink further with the realization that they were going to buy a kotatsu. He stared listlessly at the table before him, his thoughts swirling in his mind and unable to do a thing about it. Feeling Kanji's hand take his brought Souji out of those dark thoughts and back to what was at hand.

"What's the matter?" Chie asked, seeming to notice the sudden change in Souji's mood.

"It's just that Nanako and I were supposed to buy a kotatsu," Souji said softly. He cracked a weak smile that seemed to fight back his emotions. "Guess I'll just have to wait."

A slight smile crossed Kanji's face, "A kotatsu?

"Oh, then why don't we go check them out right now?" Chie asked, clasping her hands together happily. "I know Nanako-chan would be psyched if she came home and found a new kotatsu!"

"Dude, why didn't you tell me sooner?" Yosuke added with a grin. "The winter season's coming up and we just got a bunch of 'em in stock!" He suddenly leapt to his feet, striking a pose that caused everyone to laugh. "Alright, off to the house wares section! For Nanako-chan!"

The group made their way to Junes' house wares section, arguing all the way on what exactly to buy. Souji couldn't help but stand back and watch his friends go to work, pointing out selections and then deciding to add to the potential purchase. Their voices, though, seemed to meld together as his thoughts wandered back to Nanako and the entire situation. His thoughts kept him from comforting Teddie and it was his phone ringing that brought him back to reality.

Souji fumbled for the device and held it up; it was Adachi. With a sigh he flipped it open, "Hello?"

"Hello? This is Adachi. Um, I want you to stay calm and listen to me, okay?" Even over the phone it was obvious that the young detective was pacing back and forth, where ever he was. Souji couldn't help but glance up nervously; no one had seemed to notice he was on the phone. "Nanako-chan's condition has suddenly gotten worse."

"What?" Souji's voice seemed to pierce through the din of his friends, silencing them quickly and causing them to turn their attention to him. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest wildly and every thought in his mind seemed to fade away. Within those few seconds the feeling of dread Souji tried to keep to himself seemed to seep to his friends and worried expressions appeared on each of their faces.

"The doctor wants you come to the hospital immediately," Adachi's voice trailed off for a moment. "We'll be waiting."


	19. Chapter 19

[NOTE] This chapter is a little shorter but writing this scene was a bit much. Don't know if it'll be sad for you guys but it made me all teary-eyed. ;^:

And yes.....I'm back! Expect more chapters soon since life/school has calmed down!

* * *

Souji leaned against the wall, his head resting against it as he slid slowly to the floor. They couldn't see Nanako for the moment and his uncle had been escorted back to his room since he had left it against doctor's orders. The entire group now stood near the door to Nanako's room with various expression and feelings of worry and doom. Souji hugged his knees to his chest and closed his eyes, hoping that all of this was just some nightmare.

Yosuke glanced at Teddie and quickly approached him, his eyes glassy with tears. "Hey, can't you do something?" he asked. "This all has to do with the world you came from! Can't you figure something out?

Teddie's azure eyes widened and he bit his lip, trying his damnedest not to cry. "I'm thinking. . . I'm thinking, but. . ." his replied with a shaky voice.

"Damnit!" Kanji spat. "Why does this have to happen to a little girl like her?"

Souji took in a deep breath and buried his face against his legs in an attempt to hide the tears that were now streaming down his face, "We all feel the same way."

Kanji hit his fist against the wall he was facing, shaking his head. "Why'd it turn out like this?"

Chie glanced at the group, almost unsure who to address, "Nanako-chan's gonna be okay, right?"

Before anyone could reply Adachi strolled down the hallway, stopping within feet of the group. A shocked expression crossed his face, "You guys still here?"

Naoto stood up at the sound of Adachi's voice, "How is Dojima-san doing?"

Adachi rubbed the back of his neck, "His wounds opened up again. They're treating it over in his room now."

Yosuke inched closer to the detective, "Any luck with your investigation on Namatame?"

With a shocked expression Adachi glanced at the brunette before casting his eyes to the floor. "About that," he said with a sigh. "I won't mince words here; we're gonna have a hard time making these charges stick."

"What's that mean?" Yosuke asked with a frown.

Adachi glanced at the group, concerned about the mixture of worried and angry expressions he was seeing. "I talked with the guys at the station and it'll be next to impossible to find him guilty in court. Especially given the reason why we took him off our list of suspects for the first case."

Chie's shoulders slumped slightly, "Oh yeah, something about him having an alibi."

"Yeah that," Adachi sighed, "and the whole angle about him putting people into TVs, there's no way that'll stand up in court. No one would believe that. What the public wants is when, where, and how Namatame killed these people. . . and Dojima-san knows it."

Kanji strolled into the middle of the hall, his eyes locking onto Adachi. "Well," he said with venom in his voice, "ain't you calm about this?"

The color in Adachi's face seemed to drain away as he meet Kanji's stare, "I-I'm just telling you the truth."

"And you call yourself a cop? Huh?" Kanji closed the gap between himself and Adachi, seizing the detective roughly by the collar of his shirt and lifting him up slightly. The group let out a chorus of gasps that caused Souji to glance up at the situation, his tear stained face going unnoticed even by him. "If you wanna see that stuff so bad, we'll show you!" Kanji snarled. "Hurry up and bring a TV here, Damnit!"

"Hey, stop!" Rise said, standing suddenly.

Before anyone could respond the door to Nanako's room flew open and nurse hurried down the hall. "What the?" Kanji murmured, dropping Adachi as he watched the nurse coming rushing back towards them.

"Is Nanako-chan's family here?" the nurse asked quickly. The group looked at Souji and the nurse took the hint, taking him by the hand. "Hurry inside! Please talk to her!" Souji pulled away from the woman rushed into the room, taking not notice as she followed close behind and barred his friends from entering as well.

Souji's heart raced wildly in his chest as he stood at Nanako's side. She whispered for her father and the only thing he could do was tell her he'd be on his way. A raspy breath escaped her and was quickly replaced by a frantic beeping from one of the machines. Souji's stomach twisted upon itself as he feared for the worst and as the doctor spoke to her and asked her questions in an attempt to keep her with them.

The doctor looked at the nurse, "Where's Dojima-san?"

"We're calling for him now!" the nurse replied, shifting around nervously.

Nanako's eyes seemed to tighten for a moment before she forced them open. She turned her head slowly, "Big…bro…"

Souji reflexively took Nanako's hand into his own and held it tight. "I-I'm right here, Nanako," he replied, pulling closer to her.

A weak smile crossed Nanako's face as she felt Souji's hand and as she was finally able to see him. The smile, though, disappeared into one of fear. "I'm…scared…" Her chest heaved with every breath and the pain read across her face. "Big…bro…Dad...dy…" Here eyes fluttered slightly and before closing.

"Nanako," Souji whispered. He felt a lump begin forming in his throat as he received no response. "Nanako? Nanako, say something." The only response he heard was the sound of a machine flat-lining and his own sobs as he rested his head against Nanako's limp hand.

The door opened, causing Souji to look up. Dojima slowly walked in, his arm around the shoulders of a nurse to help him move. It took him only a moment to take in the sight of his nephew crying over his daughter to figure out what was happening. "Nanako!" Dojima pulled away from the nurse and stumbled to the foot of the hospital bed. The tough demeanor he had, had minutes early was no longer there and tears were beginning to form in his eyes. Dojima whispered his daughter's name once more, reaching out to touch her leg in the hopes of a response.

"I'm sorry, sir." the doctor said solemnly.

Dojima fell to his knees at the foot of the bed, his teary eyes unblinking as he stared at Nanako's body and wishing for her to move. Souji watched his uncle in silence, unsure of how to console the man as he stared at his daughter. He continued to fight back his tears as Dojima stumbled to his feet and left the room in a daze, the doctor right behind him. Souji looked back at Nanako and touched her face, smoothing the hair on her forehead as if she was sleeping.

"Senpai! Senpai!" The sound of Rise's cries brought Souji out of his own stupor and he hurried into the hall. Kanji had Adachi backed into a corner, while Yukiko, Chie, and Yosuke were trying to get him to back away. Rise hurried to Souji's side, her eyes red from crying. "Dojima-san might've gone after Namatame! Adachi-san said he was admitted to this hospital."

"You transported him to the same hospital?" Souji spat. "For crying out loud, he's the suspect in the case!"

Adachi seemed to cower, "What are you getting mad at me for? This is the biggest hospital and he's in no condition to be moved."

Souji narrowed his eyes, "Where is his room?"

"I-I can't tell you that!" Adachi replied angrily.

Kanji suddenly slammed the detective in the wall, causing his friends to cry out. "Just tell us where he is already." He held the detective against the wall and seethed with anger as he met Adachi's gaze. "Dojima-san's on his way, ain't he? You don't know what he's gonna do there if we don't stop him."

Chie let out a gasp, "Kanji-kun, you don't mean-"

"H-hold on," Adachi stammered, cutting Chie off. "Just what are you guys talking about?"

"Cough it up!" Kanji roared, seizing Adachi by the collar once more. "Where's his room?"

"T-top floor in the second surgical ward," Adachi rasped, "furthest room back b-but there's a police guard."


	20. Chapter 20

[Author's note] Getting close to the end of the story/game. Things are going to get intense(at least I think so)! There is still the possibility for a squeal, depending on how I end this entire thing but I have my plans.

I want to thank everyone for reading this and checking it out again. I am sorry about the HUGE delay between chapters but I'm moving through it! Keep on enjoying because I love to do this.

* * *

It was snowing. After the emotional roller coaster Souji had just been on the snow was a welcome relief. He turned his eyes skyward, blocking out the sound of his friends talking as he lost himself in his thoughts. Within hours he had lost Nanako only to have her revived by some miracle. The joy Souji should have felt was marred by the fact that half of his friends were willing to send Namatame to his death. It never happened, thanks to fact that Souji had convinced them that they had missed something. Whether that was true or not, he couldn't figure it out just yet; he just didn't want that man's blood on his hands.

The group dispersed, still unsure what had happened to Teddie in the mayhem but no one seemed too worried as they agreed to keep each informed. Souji, though, didn't move from his spot. He stood in the street, watching the snow fall and trying to loose himself in calmer thoughts. He knew he should be happy that Nanako was still alive but there was still that possibility that things good take another horrible turn.

The feeling of weight being placed on his shoulder brought Souji out of his daze. He looked down at himself and recognized Kanji's leather jacket as it was draped around him. Souji glanced into the bleached blonde's eyes and couldn't help return the soft smile he was given.

"Thought you should keep warm," Kanji said. His smile faded as he studied Souji's troubled face. "You okay?"

Souji pursed his lips together, "I should be…but something just doesn't feel right." He welcomed the warmth of Kanji's body as the younger boy wrapped him in an embrace. "Nanako is alive…I should be happy about that."

Kanji tightened the embrace and let out a heavy sigh. "A lot has happened, Souji; no one expects you to go right back to normal." He looked into the older boy's eyes for a moment before giving him a soft smile. "You wanna take a walk? Should clear your mind a little bit."

Glancing past Kanji the town's shrine caught Souji's eye. "I just want to go to the shrine. It might not help but it'll make me feel better."

The two boys walked close, their hands intertwining as they ascended the steps to the silent shrine. Kanji remained silent while Souji offered a few coins to the shrine before bowing his head in silent prayer. The silver haired boy slowly slipped down to his knees, his shoulders hunched as he let out a muffled sob. A wave of dread came over Kanji as he rushed to Souji's side, wrapping his arms around the sobbing boy in an attempt to console him.

"We can't loose her," Souji sobbed. "Dojima wouldn't be able to handle it and I…it would be all my fault…I couldn't do a thing to save her."

"It's not just you; we're all in this together," Kanji said softly. He sat beneath the eaves of the shrine and slowly coaxed Souji to do the same. He held the silver haired boy close, still unsure how to console his grieving friend. "None of us will let anything happen to Nanako and we'll be right there to help you stop all of this."

Souji raised his head, glancing at Kanji with worried expression. "I want you to promise me that you won't do anything to Namatame."

Kanji stared at Souji, slightly confused. "What?"

"Promise me, Kanji," Souji continued. "There _is_ something that we missed and if we allow him to be thrown back into the TV, we're just as bad as him."

"I…" Kanji's voice trailed off. There was nothing that he could think of that could prove Namatame's innocence and he stood alongside Yosuke and Naoto in the fact that the best idea had been to throw him into the TV world. Now, though, the person he loved was questioning it all and demanding that he back down from his original stance on the subject. "Souji, I don't know. Even with Naoto explaining everything, things are still confusing but there's no one else that could have done this."

Souji lowered his eyes, feeling slightly defeated, "Do you trust me, at least?"

"Of course," Kanji whispered. "If anyone else would have said that we should wait, I would've just tossed Namatame in. But it was you and you're always noticing something that no one else can see."

A smile crossed Souji's tear stained face, "Now it just sounds like you're trying to get on my good side."

Kanji mimicked Souji's smile and shrugged. "I'm not trying to, but I'll accept it if it happens." The silver haired boy rested his head against Kanji's shoulder and stared out towards the street, sighing. Resting his cheek against Souji's head all Kanji could do was the same. "Do you want to be alone?"

"No," Souji whispered. He inched closer to Kanji's body and wrapped an arm around the boy's waist. "I just need some company for a little while."

The two remained at the shrine, holding each other and talking sparingly. As the snow began to settle the shrine's fox trotted into the open, eyeing Kanji timidly. Souji called it over and found it to be better to introduce the two as best as he could. The younger boy was amazed that there was a fox living at the shrine and that Souji was on such wonderful terms with the creature. The fox stayed with them for a while, allowing them to stroke her fur before running off around the shrine.

"It's getting late," Kanji breathed.

"Yeah." Souji reluctantly climbed to his feet and shrugged off Kanji's coat, handing it to the younger boy as he stood. "Thanks for staying with me."

Kanji nodded, "I was worried about you; no one should be alone when crap like this happens."

Souji glanced at Kanji, "Sounds like you know from experience."

A rosy hue colored Kanji's cheeks for a moment but his face settled into a solemn expression. "I suppose you could say that. When my father passed away I really didn't have anyone to turn to. Ma was heartbroken and I was suddenly the man of the house; I couldn't have a moment for myself at that point." He looked at Souji, "If you need anyone to talk to, you know I'll be there. I may not have the best advice but you mean too much to me."

"Thank you," Souji said. He wrapped his arms around Kanji once more and the younger boy returned the gesture, holding Souji in a tight embrace. The silver haired boy raised his head and kissed Kanji deeply, pulling away slowly. "You don't know how much that means to me."

"How about I walk you home?"

Souji didn't bother to answer the question; instead he took Kanji's hand and led him slowly down the steps of the shrine. With the streets empty of people neither seemed concerned about hiding their relationship. Kanji put his arm around Souji's shoulders, holding him close as they spoke softly to each other about anything to keep their minds off the current situation. For those few minutes everything seemed to be back to normal.

The two stood before Dojima's house, looking at the dark façade before looking at each other. "You sure you're going to be okay?" Kanji asked. "I mean, you can crash at my place or I can stay here."

"I'll be fine," Souji replied. He wrapped his arms around Kanji's neck and lifted himself up to kiss the younger boy softly. Kanji returned the kiss, holding the other boy close for a few moments before breaking it. "I promise I'll call you if I need anything."

"Alright," Kanji sighed. "I'll see you tomorrow."

The two boys parted ways and Souji reluctantly wandered into the house. He didn't bother to switch on the lights as he fumbled through the darkness up to his room. As he prepared for bed Souji began to wonder if he should have taken Kanji up on his offer. '_No_,' he thought. '_I can spend one night by myself. I'll see them all tomorrow_.' Even with those words echoing through his mind Souji wished there was someone else in the house; things were just too empty.


	21. Chapter 21

The sound of the doorbell ringing brought Souji into the waking world. He opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling as he heard the doorbell ring once more. The sound of Igor's voice echoed in his mind partially confirming that he had been near that strange man once again. Souji threw on some clothes and hurried down the stairs as the doorbell rang once more and was accompanied by fervent knocking.

"I'm coming, I'm coming." Souji muttered to himself. He pulled open the door, a little annoyed by the impromptu alarm clock. His annoyance drained away as he was greeted by Yosuke's panicked face. "Wh-what's up?"

"Teddie's missing!" Yosuke replied with a tinge of terror in his voice. "I looked all over the neighborhood but I couldn't find him anywhere."

Souji bit his lower lip, "That worries me."

"Yeah," Yosuke nodded, "me too. He was acting all weird lately." His voice trailed off as hi mind obviously began to wander. After a moment he shook his head and returned his gaze back to Souji. "Rise and the others are checking inside the TV to see if he's gone back to the other side. We're meeting pretty soon, so will you come with me to Junes?"

"Let me grab a jacket." Souji replied.

**********

It was midday by the time Rise and Kanji returned the group, their faces full of worry and flushed from running around. The rest of the group grew quite and looked at them anxiously but everyone seemed to have the same feeling. Kanji rested his hands on the table, letting his head fall forward in silent defeat as Rise made a similar gesture.

"It's no use, man." Kanji breathed. "We can't find him."

"No luck for me either," Rise frowned as she took a seat. "I didn't sense anything over there. The fog is so dense; it might be affecting my readings. I wish I could do better…I'm sorry."

Yosuke cradled his head in his hands, "That Ted…Don't tell me he really went back to his world this time." He slumped forward, his head now resting against the chilled table with his arms splayed out next him. "We told him over and over that he could stay here."

As Yosuke began to ramble on, the sound of Igor's voice echoed in Souji's mind once. 'This may be a time for contemplation rather than action.' He shook his head, trying to push it away but the words still lingered. It made some sense, though; the more the group tired to look for Teddie and physically do something with Namatame's case, the harder it seemed to get.

"Let's think about this," Souji said, finally breaking his silence. The group glanced at him, all unsure about what to do.

"I guess that's all we can do right now," Yosuke mumbled. He sat up straight, crossing his arms over his chest as he looked around at his friends. "He plays dumb a lot but he's attached to us deep down. He wouldn't disappear without saying anything, right?"

Naoto nodded, "I'm worried for Teddie myself, but let's trust in him and await his return. Right now we must concentrate on the case. It won't be long before Namatame is transferred to another location. We must hurry or we'll miss our only chance to get his perspective on this."

"Y'know, I've been thinking about the case since, but something doesn't seem right." Yosuke replied.

"Let's quickly review the facts," Naoto explained. She riffled through her pockets quickly, pulling out a small memo pad and a pencil. As she flipped through the pages she began to talk, "Of all the victims, only two were killed: Ms. Yamano, the announcer, and Saki-san. From the documents we found in the car we know that Namatame had some sort of dealings with them. After that, there were multiple attempted murders in which we were targeted. It was only when he took Nanako-chan that we caught him in the act, identifying his modus operandi in the process."

Kanji snorted, "When I hear you put it like that, sounds like the dude's guilty."

Naoto glanced at Kanji but continued, "As a result of Namatame's arrest, the police admitted that Mitsuo Kubo was a mere copycat killer."

"Back up to yesterday…Remember when you said Namatame didn't have a motive to kill the announcer?" Yosuke asked. "That's what's bothering me."

Rise nodded, "Right. Either he's completely nuts or we're misunderstanding something."

"You lost me," Kanji chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck.

"She's trying to say that if Namatame is sane, then there may be facts in the case we don't know yet," Yukiko explained.

Souji cocked his head to one side, "When he talks about 'saving' people, what does that actually mean?"

"I don't think there's any doubt that it includes kidnapping people and throwing them into the TV," Yosuke frowned.

Naoto flipped her notebook close and lowered her head, her face stern as she seemed to lose herself to her thoughts. The group watched her in silence, waiting to hear what she had to say. "Could he mean," Naoto said slowly, "saving them through death?" She glanced up at her friends, noting their shocked expressions. "He did call himself a 'savior' and said that the other side was a 'wonderful world'."

"So they'd be saved if they die?" Kanji shook his head with a frown, "What a bunch of crap…The bastard should've gone and 'saved' himself. Whaddya think, Senpai?"

Souji felt his face go red as the group turned to look at him as Kanji posed his question. "There has to be something else," he stammered.

Kanji sighed, "If you think about it normally it's gotta be him…but there ain't nothing normal about that world anyways."

"There's been something I've been wondering about for a while," Yukiko mused. She paused for a moment, gathering her thoughts. "When we first encountered him, he said 'You're the ones I saved. Don't worry, I'll save this girl too'." Yukiko pursed her lips together and looked at her friends; they all exchanged shocked expressions as things seemed to take another twist. "So if he 'saves' people by killing them, did he save us too? Wouldn't he actually have failed to save us?"

"You raise a good point," Naoto smiled. "If he thinks that salvation comes only through death, his words to us make no sense. And another thing, the Namatame who appeared on the Midnight Channel said he failed to save Nanako-chan."

Chie heaved a sigh, "Well maybe he really was trying to save the victims by putting them inside the TV." All eyes suddenly turned to her and Chie slumped over slightly. "Oh c'mon, don't get all quiet like that!" she cried. "You guys know that I just say the first dumb thing that pops into my head."

"The possibility that he truly intended to save us…" Naoto whispered, her voice trailing off.

"But he's still the one who threw in Saki-senpai and that announcer, right?" Yosuke asked with a furrowed brow. "Sure we haven't nailed down his motives, but that doesn't change the fact that he killed them. Or what, you think someone else was involved? What makes you think so?"

As silence settled over the group once more, it seemed to dawn on Souji that he held a possible key to it all. "The warning letters," he said.

Yosuke paused and cocked an eyebrow, "Warning letter…? Oh yeah! Whatever happened to that thing?"

"If Namatame's the killer he must've been the one who wrote it, right?" Souji asked, glancing at Naoto.

"Let's review them then," Naoto replied.

"The first one said 'Don't rescue anymore' and the other one said 'If you don't stop this time, someone close will be put in and killed'." Souji said.

Rise wrinkled her nose, "Isn't that kind odd? Would someone who thinks he's saving people by killing them write stuff like 'don't rescue' or 'kill'?"

"Yeah," Kanji said, clapping his hands together, "and the whole 'will be put in and killed' part doesn't make sense either. If the killer was writing it, wouldn't it be more like 'I'll put in and kill'?"

"Hey," Chie piped in, "could this mean…"

Souji slumped in his chair slightly, "Namatame didn't write it."

"It's almost like someone else wrote the last letter," Chie continued.

Yukiko glanced at Souji, "But only the killer would write such a letter and deliver it to Doujima-san's house, right? If someone else wrote it that could only mean…"

"Dear god," Naoto breathed. Her eyes were wide with shock as she looked down at the table and seemed to go over what was in her mind. "Since this is such an unusual case, I was absolutely convinced that other than the Kubo incident, there was one culprit."

"So Namatame really was trying to save his victims?" Rise asked.

"Everything is the exact opposite of what it first seemed," Naoto explained. "In Namatame's parlance, 'failing' would have been the first two cases, when the victims died. If he used his methods twice, and failed both times, he would have hardly continued using the TV. And yet he did. It all seems to suggest that someone else wrote this warning letter while observing the entire case."

Yosuke's eyes widened slightly, "Someone else? It wasn't Namatame that killed Saki-senpai and the announcer?"

"We can't say for certain yet. We urgently need to speak with Namatame face to face," Naoto replied.

* * *

[This part of the game seemed wordy to me and I ended up keeping true to that but I won't be dragging the story down with Namatame's interrogation. There might not be much more 'tender' moments, but things will be getting intense so I hope everyone enjoys this and 'bear' with me!]


	22. Chapter 22

Souji was exhausted; the previous evening the group had listened to Namatame's story and then throughout the day they had been questioning people around town. It seemed like they were getting no where and as he half listened to his friends he knew they felt the same. They had met Aiya to converse and ended up eating a meal to try and work things out but nothing had changed since the day before.

Glancing at his friends but deep in his own thoughts Souji rested his head against Kanji's shoulder. No one seemed to notice or care as Kanji put an arm around him, holding him close as they all conversed. Souji did try to listen to Naoto as she explained things and as the others added their own perspective, but it all seemed muddled together.

The feeling of soft lips pressed against his fore head brought Souji out of his daze and he glanced up at Kanji. "You okay? You seem kinda spacey," he whispered

Souji nodded and glanced at Naoto as she strolled out of the diner to get some fresh air. The others seemed to hunch over the table, their faces solemn as they tried to figure things out for themselves. "I need some air too," Souji mumbled. He kissed Kanji lightly on the cheek and strolled out onto the street.

Naoto stood on the curb, her face turned skyward as she watched the snow fall. She glanced at Souji out of the corner of her eye, "It's snowing…no wonder it's chilly." Mimicking Naoto, Souji looked at the clouds and heaved a sigh.

"It's freezing out here. Maybe this'll help clear my head and get my deductive muscles flexing," Yosuke said as he joined the duo on the street. He jammed his hands into his pocket and glanced at the clouds angrily. "Is it snowing? Too bad the fog's so thick…The snow just gets lost in it."

As Souji stared at the clouds the facts of the case began tumbling through his mind. He knew he and the other had to figure things out but it was getting things in order that seemed to mar their trek forward. Taking in another chest full of cold air Souji closed his eyes and forced himself to think.

"Hey, what's the matter?" Yosuke asked.

'_The culprit had some sort of connection with both Mayumi Yamano and Saki Konishi_,' Souji thought. He opened his eyes and watched the snow once more, ignoring Yosuke's question. '_Judging by the warning letters, the culprit most likely knows about the other side and what we did there. And they had to know what Namatame was doing but they just stood there. Who would know all of these things? Besides that, both warning letters were delivered to the house but no one saw anyone suspicious, just like with Yamano and Saki-san...despite the police dispatching in high numbers of officers to investigate._'

Souji's eyes widened, "Adachi?"

Yosuke cocked an eyebrow, "What about him?"

"Detective Adachi," Naoto pondered. She nodded to herself as if confirming her own inner dialogue. "A member of the police force…That is an interesting approach; that would certainly explain the lack of witness reports and the same reason why no one ever reported seeing Namatame's truck."

"This is a small town, so everyone must've known who he is." Yosuke added with a stern expression. "And since he's a detective people definitely wouldn't have thought of him as being suspicious."

Naoto snapped her fingers and nodded, "In fact, he could have used his position to his advantage and hide crucial information."

"Huh…Well if you think about it that way, I guess it's possible." Yosuke said softly but shook his head. "But we're talking about Adachi here, right? I mean really, Adachi? He's your textbook lousy detective. Are we really on the right track here?"

"Actually…regarding Detective Adachi," Naoto said, turning her eyes to the street. "I'm not sure how to put it, but there's something that's been bothering me about him for some time now."

Yosuke turned and faced Naoto, "Yeah?"

"Perhaps its just my imagination so I shouldn't speak too-" Naoto's voice trailed off as her nose wrinkled and she let out a sneeze.

"I think we've cooled down enough here," Yosuke announced. "Let's go back in."

The three turned and trekked back to their table and took there respective seats. Kanji once more wrapped his arm around Souji in an attempt to warm the older boy but to also have that physical touch. Naoto took a moment to tell the others what they had talked about outside, explaining why it seemed to make perfect sense.

"Adachi-san," Yukiko gasped. She pursed her lips and shook her head adamantly. "That can't be. I mean, he came to escort Ms. Yamano and…"

"What?" Naoto interjected. "Was he staying at your inn when the announcer was staying there?"

"When Ms. Yamano was staying at out inn, the media were swarming all over it." Yukiko explained. "That's when Adachi-san arrived, saying he had been assigned to guard her…He told our waitress that fame could be rough."

Naoto narrowed her eyes, "Guard her? He didn't spend the night there?"

Chie rested her elbows on the table and cradled her chin in her hands. "Huh…I wonder if he knew Ms. Yamano…"

Kanji shrugged, "I don't know about that, but I heard he did call out to a girl in my class. I found out this afternoon. But I thought, y'know, that's just how cops are, so I didn't think it had anything to do with the case."

"Detective Adachi also questioned Saki-san, the one who found the announcer's body, on numerous occasions," Naoto explained. "I heard it was because there was so little information about the case at the time but…it's certainly unusual to question someone with as strong an alibi as hers multiple times."

"Then you think he had something else on his mind," Chie asked.

"And that 'something' is what connects those two victims to Adachi-san?" Yosuke added. He paused for a moment. "Come to think of it, we've been running into that guy a lot, in all sorts of places."

Souji nodded, "And every time, he'd tell us what the police were doing before saying 'Oops, I said too much,' and clamming up."

Yosuke ran a hand through his hair, "Was that all to throw us off the trail?"

"It would be no problem for him to drop that warning letter into your mailbox, either…" Rise commented. "Not to mention the fact that he could destroy any evidence that might point to him."

"Then…is it really Adachi-san?" Yukiko whispered.

Souji frowned, "It has to be him."

"This is still only a tentative theory," Naoto explained. "We should work to confirm it as soon as possible." Without another word Naoto left her chair and pulled out her cell phone, pushing a single button before raising it to her ear. "This is Naoto Shirogami; something has occurred to me about the case, and I'd like to get Detective Adachi's input on it…Hm? The transport? It's right now?! Right, I-I see…Thank you!"

Chie stood up slowly, waiting until Naoto put her phone away. "What was that about a transport?"

Naoto narrowed her eyes, "Detective Adachi is headed to the hospital to prepare for Namatame's relocation. We must get there at once!"

**********

The hospital was rather quiet as the group walked down the hall. No one knew what they were going to say or what could happen, but they all felt prepared. Souji could see Adachi standing at the nurse's station talking with one of the nurses who was assigned to his uncle. For a moment the silver haired boy noticed a rather serious expression on the detective's face, something out of the ordinary for the man.

Adachi glanced at the group, his expression quickly changing to one of slight confusion. "What are you guys doing here?" he asked. He looked at Souji and heaved a sigh, "Hey, do you know where Dojima-san went? They told me he snuck out of his room again."

The nurse frowned slightly, "I assure you we've made it clear to him several times that he needs to stay put, but he keeps running off on his own." Before anyone could respond to the woman she turned away sharply and walked down the hall.

"Geez," Adachi breathed, rubbing his forehead. "With Namatame finally relocated I was looking forward to going home."

"So, he's been relocated." Naoto said, putting a hand in her pocket. "I've been wondering…You seem to be in a terrible hurry to get him out of this hospital."

"Huh? Oh, well, yeah." Adachi chuckled. "I mean, we can't leave him here with Dojima-san and Nanako-chan around; didn't you guys think so to?" The detective's usual soft expression changed slightly as he seemed to realize something. "Hey, what are you doing here, anyway? Nanako-chan's room is in the other wing. Don't you think you should leave before Dojima-san finds you? If he catches you he'll start pestering you again."

As if by cue Dojima rounded a near by corner, his face a mask of worry. His eyes were zeroed in on his partner, seeming to block out the fact that his nephew and his nephew's friends were crowding him. "Adachi…Where's Namatame? There's been a lot of noise today for some reason."

"D-Dojima-san!" Adachi stammered, swallowing hard. "What're you doing here!? Namatame's already been relocated; I was looking for you so I could tell you that."

"You did what?" Dojima spat. The worry and restlessness that had been in the man's eyes a moment before was quickly replaced by the fire they usually held. "Who authorized that? There's still more I need to ask him about!"

"G-gimme a break, D-Dojima-san," Adachi replied.

Dojima's gaze didn't waver, "Those first two murders have been bothering me. His motives are shaky and his alibi is rock solid. We closed a lot of loopholes on the basis of his testimony but that part's still nagging at me."

"Is this more of your 'detective's intuition'?" Adachi asked, sounding slightly annoyed. "He's already been relocated…Its no use hassling me about it." He suddenly wheeled around and looked at Souji and the others, a hint of anger and frustration flashing on his face. "And you kids should really get home too. You're gonna get in the of police business."

"What's gotten into you today?" Dojima asked, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. "It's odd to see you taking work so seriously."

Adachi glanced at Dojima, cracking a forced smile. "C-C'mon, I'm always giving 110% when it comes to the job!" He broadened his smile and placed a hand on Dojima's shoulder, "You should get back to work too, Dojima-san. Your current assignment: Get better as soon as possible!"

Dojima shook off his partner's hand and looked past him, taking note of the small group that was there. "What're you all doing here?"

"We came to confirm something," Souji said, "with Adachi-san." He waited until Adachi turned to him, watching the detective's face for anything out of the ordinary but he found nothing. "Can you tell us about Ms. Yamano vanishing?"

Adachi blinked, "The time the announcer went missing? I can't say for sure offhand…it's not like I saw her or anything." He paused for a moment, running a hand through his shaggy hair. "That was months and months ago, too. My memory's kinda hazy that far back."

"What about Saki- san's interrogation?" Souji continued.

"Why wouldn't I question her? She discovered the announcer's body. But she didn't know much about it, so I only talked to her once or twice." Adachi replied, his eyes narrowing ever so slightly before he smiled. "Was that all you wanted to ask? Well, I hoped it helped."

Souji swallowed hard, "H-hang on. I was wondering if you had found anything out about that warning letter."

"Warning letter?" Adachi replied.

"The one that was delivered to his house," Naoto interjected. "It's in police custody now, correct?"

Adachi's eyes quickly went to the floor, "Uhh…I don't really remember."

"Hey, whaddya mean you don't remember?" Dojima asked, anger once more riddling his tone. "I gave it to you to take down to the crime lab for processing. You're telling me you forgot!?"

"I'm sorry," Adachi replied with a nervous laugh. "Your accident was right after that, and what with one thing and another, it sorta slipped me mind…B-Besides, that thing was just a prank, wasn't it?" He looked back to Souji and his friends, realizing that each one of the high school students were watching him with untrusting eyes. "Geez, what're you asking me all this for?" Adachi snapped. "For crying out loud, what's this all supposed to be about!" He turned swiftly to Dojima, "Dojima-san, you really need to get back to your bed; that's why your wounds aren't healing. And you all need to go home right now! Do you have any idea what time it is!? I'm going back…I need to get to the station and report int."

As Adachi began to move through the group of students Yosuke and Kanji stepped around him, boxing the detective in the midst of them. Naoto stepped forward with a stern expression on her face, "Just one more thing, please. We know for certain now that the first two murders weren't Namatame's doing; someone else killed them." She paused for a moment, waiting for Adachi to make eye contact. "Adachi-san…Do you have any idea who that might be?"

Glancing around at the students Adachi shook his head, "I-I have no idea what you're talking about."

Kanji took a step closer to Adachi, "'Cause we think…it mighta been you."

Adachi wheeled around, "What!? Th-that's ridiculous! We already know Namatame's the one who put them all in!"

"What did you just say?" Chie gasped.

"Put them all in? What's this 'putting them' in business?" Dojima asked, taking a shaky step forward. He suddenly seized Adachi by the arm, "Do you know something about the method behind their murders? Don't tell me that all that talk about TVs and whatnot before was…"

"I see…Now I finally understand." Naoto said with a satisfied smile. "To tell the truth, Adachi-san, I've been fixated on something you once said. Before I didn't know why…Only that it sounded a wrong note to me." She strolled towards Adachi who followed her with a hard stare, the calm and gentle demeanor in his eyes slowly dissipating. "Do you recall when I read Namatame's diary at the scene of Dojima-san's accident? At the time, I said, 'Even the victims who survived and were never released to the public are written here.' And in response, your words were, 'Wow…Then that settles it'. How, I wonder, does that 'settle' anything?

"At the time the police had no idea there had been other attempted murders related to the case. You had no reason to say such a thing. After all, there are countless examples of people disappearing for a few days…Yet when I read the list of names, you raised no objections. Odd, that." Naoto narrowed her eyes. "What do you say to that, Detective Adachi?"

"I-I don't know…I said I'm busy." Adachi suddenly wrenched his arm away from Dojima, knocking the man off balance. As the group focused their attention on the older detective Adachi suddenly broke through them, sprinting down the hall.

"Wait, you son of a bitch!" Kanji yelled, racing after Adachi.

The others followed close behind, the sound of Dojima's yelling voice echoing after them. They rounded the corner in time to watch Adachi's form disappear behind an elevator door, his eyes wild with anger. Kanji tore open the door to a neighboring flight of stairs, telling the others that the detective was heading up.

"Namatame's original room was in this wing, wasn't it?" Souji asked as he darted up the stairs, the others trailing behind him.

"You're right!" Naoto replied. It was that confirmation that caused them to pick up speed as they ascended the stairs.

As the group spilled into the hall way, Yosuke pointed towards a closing door, quickly claiming that the room was where Namatame had been. Once more they broke out into a run, dodging the nurses and ignoring their questions as they all peered through open doors before they reached their goal. Kanji kicked the door open in one move and all they saw was an empty, darkened hospital room.

"What the…" Yosuke panted. "I swear he ran in here."

"Damnit," Kanji growled. "Where the hell'd he go?"

"Did you find him?" The group spun around, their hearts still racing from before, and watched as Dojima stumbled into the room.

Souji reflexively reached for his uncle, catching the man before he fell to the ground. "No," he replied. "I think we lost him."

Dojima winced in pain, "I contacted security…Nobody's seen Adachi, and there's no record of anyone leaving this area. So he must be still in this ward somewhere."

Chie looked around the room, "He's still here? But we…we didn't find him anywhere."

"That bastard," Dojima groaned.

"Dojima-san!" Souji glanced over his shoulder and watched as a nurse flew into the room. "For heaven's sake, what are we going to do with you?"

A weak smile crossed Dojima's face, "Sorry, I got carried away."

The nurse sighed and took hold of Dojima as Souji released his hold on his uncle. "Do you even want to get better?" the nurse asked. "If you keep this up, there could be lasting damages! Have you forgotten how much trouble it caused you last time?"

A flush of embarrassment crossed Dojima's face, "You're right…sorry." As the nurse began to lead him away, Dojima paused and glanced at Souji and then the boy's friends. "You've got to find Adachi. I need to square this away with him…Please."

As the door closed the group looked at each other in silence, before glancing at the TV. "He hasn't left this ward yet?" Yukiko said. She slowly moved towards the TV, placing her hand against the screen. "I don't think he would, but could he have…?"

"Yeah, I think so." Souji said softly. "If he's the killer, he can go through, right?"

Rise's eyes widened slightly, "You mean he went in through here?"

"We searched every inch in the direction he ran off," Yosuke explained. "There's no where to hide! I don't think we could've missed him."

"He was cornered," Naoto continued. "It's highly probable that he escaped there. If he does indeed turn up on the other side that should prove beyond a doubt that he is the true culprit."

"Damn, so I guess we were right," Kanji muttered. He balled his hand into a fist and shook his head, trying to restrain his anger. "What do we do now?"

"We should go through tomorrow," Souji replied, ignoring the shocked looks from his friends. "It's too dangerous to enter through here."

Rise nodded, "We're not 100% positive that he used this TV, and on top of that, we don't know where it might lead. Let's go in from Junes, like always." She broke into a slight smile, trying to get the others to do the same. "It'll be fine. So long as we're ready for him, we'll crush that jerk in one strike!"


	23. Chapter 23

"Thanks for letting me stay the night, Mrs. Tatsumi," Souji said with a bright smile.

Kanji's mother mimicked the smile and led Souji into the house by the hand. "You don't have to thank me. With your uncle and niece in the hospital I thought it would be best if you had some company." She took Souji's bag and placed it by the stair before returning to him. "Kanji should have dinner done in just a moment, so you made it just in time. Would you like anything to drink?"

"Um, just water, I suppose." Souji replied. He stayed at the bottom of the stairs for a moment, unsure of what to do but decided to follow Kanji's mother towards the kitchen.

"Kanji, did you set up that guest room like I asked you to?" The sound of Mrs. Tatsumi's voice seemed to hold the smile that she was wearing.

"Not yet, Ma," Kanji grumbled, "y'had me working on this dinner so I didn't have the time."

Mrs. Tatsumi gave a soft chuckle. "Well, I can finish this while you take this to our guest and take his things up to the guest room."

After a moment of undecipherable grumblings and the sound clattering silverware, Kanji appeared in the hallway with a cup in hand. His face was flushed from working in the kitchen and his hair was no longer slicked back. Kanji paused as he looked at Souji, a little shocked but that shock melted away into annoyance. He turned around and poked his head back into the kitchen, "Why didn't you tell me who was stayin' here?"

"Does it matter?" Mrs. Tatsumi laughed.

"Yeah, it does." Kanji spat. He turned his attention back to Souji, blushing now from embarrassment as he approached him.

"She didn't tell you I was coming over?" Souji asked, taking the offered cup.

Kanji shook his head, "All she said was that we had a guest for the night. Ma always has some friend from out of town randomly stopping by or something. She has a better social life than I do." He scooped up Souji's bag and motioned for him to follow as they went to the store's second story. "I can set up the guest room like Ma wants or," Kanji said, glancing back at Souji, "you could sleep in my room."

Souji could feel the heat rise in his face and all he could do was smile slightly, "Sleeping in your room sounds better, but would your mother be okay with it?"

"She won't care," Kanji replied as he pushed the door open to his room. As he placed Souji's bag and the floor he heard the silver haired boy put his cup down before he hugged Kanji tightly from behind. Kanji couldn't help but smile as he turned around and returned the embrace, "You all right?"

"I just want this to be over with," Souji replied.

Kanji tightened his embrace, kissing Souji's forehead softly. "We'll find Adachi and make him pay, you can be damn sure of that." he whispered. "After that's all said and done, your uncle will focus on getting better and so will Nanako-chan."

"I hope so," Souji sighed, burying his head into Kanji's chest.

Lifting Souji's face with one hand Kanji kissed his lips softly. The silver haired boy returned the kiss with fervor and all Kanji could do was respond in kind. As the two moved together, the cup that he had placed on a small table tumbled to the ground, breaking and sending glass and water across the floor. Both knew they should stop to clean it up but neither one seemed ready to stop.

"Is everything all right, Kanji?"

Kanji broke this kiss at the sound of his mother's voice, "Y-yeah, Ma." His voice cracked slightly as he felt Souji's tongue snake across his bare neck. "The cup just fell over; I-I'll clean it up."

"When you're done, come down and eat."

"Later?" Kanji whispered.

Souji looked up at the younger boy and smiled slightly, his face flushed, "Y-yeah."

**********

Their dinner had been uneventful but Souji found the conversation with Kanji's mother endearing. He was beginning to believe that even if Kanji hadn't told her, she knew that there was something between the two of them. It didn't seem like she minded and actually seemed genuinely happy that Kanji was happy and the fact that Souji didn't seem as down as he had been when he had arrived.

As the night went along the boys found themselves back in Kanji's room, wishing his mother good night as they closed the door. They prepared themselves for bed and laid the futons out, side by side. Neither of them said too much as the lights turned off and they settled beneath their blankets.

In the darkness, though, Souji moved closer to Kanji and smiled to himself as the younger boy pulled him beneath his covers. Even in the darkness their mouths find each other and they were quickly locked in a kiss. Kanji held Souji tightly against his own body, feeling the boy's body heat meld with his own and loving the sensation that he received as Souji moved his legs slowly so that it rubbed him ever so slightly.

"I've missed this," Kanji whispered as he kissed Souji's neck. "But if we make too much noise, though, Ma'll probably wake up."

Souji bit his lip to keep himself quite as he felt the younger boy bite him softly. "I-I'll try but I can promise anything." He let out a reflexive moan as Kanji slipped a hand past the elastic of his pajama pats and took hold of him. The moan was stifled by Kanji's mouth as he began to kiss Souji once more. The silver haired boy shuddered as he felt Kanji's hand slowly begin to stroke him, bringing on waves of pleasure that overshadowed the problems that were facing them.

"Y'like that?" Kanji breathed. All Souji could manage to do was nod, causing the younger boy to smile. He tightened his grip on the boy, loving the sounds Souji made as he continued the painfully slow movements. "W-what do you want me to do?" Kanji new the way he asked made him seem rather unsure, but he was; he didn't want to cross any unseen boundaries that Souji had put up.

"I…I want you to," Souji whispered, his breathing matching the speed of Kanji's hand movements, "fuck me."

Kanji had to admit to himself that he wasn't expecting that response but it did send a thrill through him. There was only one problem. "I-I don't have lotion or anything," Kanji said. Even in the darkness he could see the look in Souji's eye before he escaped Kanji's grasp and disappeared beneath the covers. The younger boy was about to protest but his words were lost in a breathy moan as he felt Souji forcefully pull his pants down and quickly take him into his mouth.

"You're somethin' else." Kanji murmured. He tangled his fingers into Souji's hair, letting his eyes flutter shut as the older boy ran his tongue against him. Kanji slowly moved his hips in time with Souji's movements, gritting his teeth in attempt to keep himself from letting out a moan that was too loud.

As sudden as it had happened Souji pulled away from Kanji only to straddle him a moment later, now fully nude. With his eyes finally adjusted to the dim lights from the street, Kanji watched as his love positioned himself just right. Kanji put his hands on Souji's hips as he slowly entered him. Both boys moaned as the bleached blonde slowly began to thrust, his nails digging into Souji's skin in an attempt to control the older boy's motions.

"I want you to watch you get yourself off," Kanji whispered with a grunt.

Souji didn't say a word but consented to the idea by stroking himself in time with Kanji's thrusts. Their eyes locked in the dim light before Souji's head rolled back slightly with a soft moan. The sight was close to a sensory overload for Kanji and he was beginning to notice that familiar feeling creeping up on him.

Kanji bit his lip and closed his eyes, "I don't know how much longer I can hold on."

"Not yet," Souji murmured. He picked up speed as he looked at Kanji, studying his face and the expression he held. "I want you to look at me." Kanji did so and as he watched Souji stroking himself he stumbled over that edge. The guttural moan that escaped the younger boy, mixed with the tensing of his body, helped Souji reach that same moment of raw, animalistic bliss. As Souji climaxed, though, Kanji pulled him close, crushing their mouths together and making that moment last a lifetime as the older boy moaned into the kiss.

Souji slowly pulled away, opening his eyes to meet Kanji's gaze. "I love you," he whispered.

"I love you too," Kanji replied with a slight blush. The two kissed once more, ignoring the mess they had made and just enjoying each other.


End file.
